Chinese Smithfield to Build New Pork Plant at I-29/I-90 with State Subsidy

Corporate welfare is bad enough, but now the state of South Dakota is forking out cash to China.

Chinese-owned Smithfield Foods has a problem: CEO Shane Smith says they “have to either make significant renovations to our 100-year-old Sioux Falls facility or build a new plant.” Smithfield responds to this necessity by choosing to move its Sioux Falls meatpacking operations from the old plant at the north side of downtown to Foundation Park at the city limits by the intersection of I-29 and I-90.

This move is a solid business decision. Smithfield will also have more land on which to build an updated facility that will help it make more money on its meat:

The proposed combined fresh pork and packaged meats facility will be the most modern of its kind in the U.S., with highly efficient process flow, advanced automation technology and a streamlined design. The new, best-in-class facility will deliver significant efficiency gains to Smithfield’s fresh pork and high-value packaged meats operations [Smithfield Foods, press release, 2026.02.16].

Instead of having to drive into the heart of the city, Smithfield’s suppliers and outbound freight will simply hop off and on the Interstate, saving time and money. They’ll still have rail access. Smithfield can also make a nice one-time gain selling the 120 acres it currently holds in town to developers salivating over the opportunity to build houses and shops to take advantage of the economic and cultural momentum that has pushed downtown activity north toward Falls Park.

We fans of the free market should all look at this sensible business move, say, “Yeah, smart move, Smithfield,” and have another hot dog.

But the Chinese haven’t become a superpower just by making good business decisions. As Communists, they are pros at state-supported industry, and they have spread their Communist ideology to South Dakota, where the state will subsidize a business decision that should happen all by itself in a rational free market with a $12-million handout:

Bill Even, commissioner of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, said the state is committing $12 million in grants from its Future Fund to the Sioux Falls Development Foundation to help with the project. The money will help reimburse the foundation for the land where the new plant will be located, and for costs associated with preparing it for construction [Joshua Haiar, “Deal to Move Pork Plant from Downtown to Northern Sioux Falls Includes $50 Million Sanford Gift,” South Dakota Searchlight, 2026.02.16].

So much for the free market, and so much for getting tough with China.

T. Denny Sanford is throwing 50 of the millions he made fleecing credit card users back to the city to buy up the current Smithfield property, demolish the old meatpacking plant, and turn it into the “Sanford District” (boy, T. Denny really is on track to rename the whole city “Sanford Falls“), which outgoing mayor Paul TenHaken says will be developed thanks to more tax handouts in the form of tax increment financing.

The motivation for this communism—money from the state to get Smithfield the new property, a handout from the state’s favorite billionaire to get the old property off Smithfield’s hands quickly and cleanly—is likely the fear that Smithfield would build its new plant outside South Dakota and shutter its Sioux Falls operation entirely, as sausage grinder has closed plants in Iowa and North Carolina in the last three years and is planning to close a Massachusetts plant this year. None of the news reports say directly that the Chinese said, “Welfare, or we walk!” but Mayor TenHaken nodded toward this fear:

TenHaken told the crowd at Monday’s event about a study from the University of Nebraska estimating the closure of a Tyson Foods beef processing plant in Lexington, Nebraska, will have a $3.3 billion negative annual impact on that state. He said the economic pain for South Dakota would be similar if Smithfield closed or moved out of state.

“So, the fact that they’re staying here in this state, we just cannot thank you enough for continuing this partnership here in South Dakota,” TenHaken said [Haiar, 2026.02.16].

The Senate voted unanimously last week for Senate Bill 60, which originally called for a ban on China and other foreign bad guys from owning property within ten miles of any military installations in South Dakota but now, as amended by Senate Commerce and Energy, bans the Chinese and the rest of SPECTRE from owning any property anywhere in South Dakota. But apparently South Dakota doesn’t really mean it. Not only does the state approve of the Chinese owning land and a pork factory at the most vital transportation hub in the state, less than four miles from the Air National Guard base, but the state will also give China $12 million to get that land and prepare it for their profitable expansion.