Tyson Foods

Type: Public
Founded: 1931
Headquarters: Springdale, Arkansas, USA
Key people: John Tyson, Chairman, Richard Bond, CEO
Industry: Food processing
Products: Meat
Website: www.tyson.com

General Information

Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN) is an American multinational corporation based in Springdale, Arkansas, that operates in the food industry. The company is the world's largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef, and pork, and annually exports the largest percentage of beef out of the United States. With 2005 sales of US$26 billion, Tyson Foods is the second-largest food production company in the Fortune 500, the largest meat producer in the world, and according to Forbes one of the 100 largest companies in the United States.

The company makes a wide variety of protein-based and prepared food products at its 123 food processing plants. Tyson Foods has approximately 107,000 employees, who work at more than 300 facilities in the United States and throughout the world. Tyson works with 6,729 contract chicken growers.

Tyson Foods is one of largest U.S. marketers of value-added chicken, beef and pork to retail grocers, broad line foodservice distributors and national fast food and full service restaurant chains; fresh beef and pork; frozen and fully-cooked chicken, beef and pork products; case-ready beef and pork; supermarket deli chicken products; meat toppings for the pizza industry and retail frozen pizza; club store chicken, beef and pork; ground beef and flour tortillas.

Tyson Foods is a supplier of all Yum! Brands chains that use chicken (including Kentucky Fried Chicken and Taco Bell), as well as McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Wal-Mart, Kroger, Costco, IGA, Beef O'Brady's, small restaurant businesses and prisons.

History

In 2001, Tyson Foods acquired IBP, Inc., United States' biggest beef packer and number two pork processor, for US$3.2 billion in cash and stock. Tyson has also acquired such companies as Hudson Foods Company, Garrett poultry, Washington Creamery, Franz Foods, Prospect Farms, Krispy Chickens, Ocoma Foods, Cassady Broiler, Vantress Pedigree, Wilson Foods, Honeybear Foods, Mexican Original, Valmac Industies, Heritage Valley, Lane Processing, Cobb-Vantress, Holly Farms, and Wright Brand Foods, Inc. on the way to its rise as the World's top food processor and marketer. It also acquired along with its purchase of IBP, Inc., the naming rights to an event center in Sioux City, Iowa.