Smithfield Foods Inc. announced a new initiative Wednesday, Smithfield Bioscience, that will leverage byproducts from the meat production process. The company said the byproducts would be used in the development of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and medical device solutions.
The new venture will support a range of biotechnology solutions in areas of human therapeutics, tissue fabrication and regenerative medicine.
Kenneth M. Sullivan, president and CEO of Smithfield Foods, said in a statement that the new initiative reflects the company’s innovative values “by finding new uses for byproducts that benefit the health and well-being of others.”
Currently, Smithfield sells byproducts to pharmaceutical and nutraceutical companies who use these materials to develop drugs that treat issues ranging from indigestion to hypothyroidism and deep vein thrombosis. Smithfield Bioscience siad it would expand upon these efforts by exploring new methods and technologies for addressing concerns such as tissue regeneration and the availability of viable human organs for transplantation.
