The Smithfield Packing Company Inc., a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods Inc., announced that it plans to shift bone-in ham production from its Landover, Maryland, plant to its facilities in North Carolina and Kentucky, and then permanently close the Landover plant by early fall.

Closing the Landover plant will affect about 175 hourly and salaried employees. Some employees will be offered transfers to other Smithfield Packing facilities, and the company also will negotiate with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union officials regarding other potential opportunities related to this transition.

"We deeply regret having to close this facility because we recognize that layoffs and plant closings are difficult for everyone concerned," said Tim Schellpeper, president of Smithfield Packing.

"However, the Landover plant is a facility that no longer meets our ever-changing production needs. We will work diligently to transfer as many employees as possible to our other operations," Schellpeper said.

The company will comply with the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN), and will provide employees with a 60-day notification of the plant closure. Under the WARN Act, the company also will notify state dislocated worker units so that they can promptly offer dislocated worker assistance.

Smithfield Foods Inc.