SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - A meatpacking company has agreed to pay
a fine after it was accused of undervaluing hog carcasses and
falsifying records at slaughterhouses in South Dakota and Iowa.
Officials say John Morrell & Co. will pay $162,500 as part of a
settlement agreement with the federal government.
The case dates back to 2005 at meatpacking plants in Sioux Falls
and Sioux City, Iowa. The Sioux City plant closed last year. The
Sioux Falls plant employs about 3,000 people.
The Cincinnati-based company might have cheated hog producers out
of as much as $570,000.
Morrell officials say the underpayments were a mistake. The
agreement says the company did not admit or deny the allegations,
but agreed to pay the fine rather than have a hearing.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AP-NY-09-25-11 0917EDT
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