Smithfield Foods Joins Nistevo Collaborative Logistics Network

Transportation Management Network to Connect Smithfield's Multiple Business Units, Improving Customer Service, Cross-Company Shipment Visibility and Private Fleet Utilization

MINNEAPOLIS - Dec. 16, 2003 - Nistevo Corp., the leading Collaborative Logistics NetworkSM for transportation management, announced today that Smithfield Foods, the world's largest pork processor and hog producer, has joined the Nistevo Network. With over 150,000 shipments annually, the Nistevo Network will enable Smithfield to connect the logistics operations from its ten independent business units for the first time, automate manual tendering processes and offer better order visibility to its customers nationwide.

Having grown significantly through recent acquisitions, Smithfield continually seeks new methods to further excel in customer service and realize new operational efficiencies across all of its diverse business units. Earlier this year, the company realized its need for a single transportation management network that would easily connect all locations, carriers, and customers. Smithfield selected the Nistevo Network and plans to eventually enroll all of its business units. As part of this process, it will connect its many processing and distribution sites, its private fleet of over 900 trucks and more than 350 core carriers. Connecting Smithfield's core carriers will be streamlined, as approximately 35 percent of the carriers are already on the Nistevo Network supporting other refrigerated shippers.

Using the Nistevo Network, Smithfield will:

Plan its shipments

Take advantage of intra-company visibility to shipments for better tracking

Automate its tendering processes for improved efficiencies

Leverage continuous move and backhaul opportunities across its business units to reduce costs

Share its private fleet across business units to improve asset utilization

Centrally manage its route guide to increase contract compliance enterprise-wide

Offer visibility to in-transit freight to its customer service department for improved customer service levels

"After thoroughly evaluating the solutions available in transportation management, my team at Smithfield determined that visibility and execution were most critical to accomplishing our business objectives," said Larry Shipp, vice president of transportation at Smithfield. "A network was the answer as it provided easy connectivity via the Web while providing not only the robust TMS functionality of similar enterprise software applications, but allowing us to connect across and outside our organization for additional value. We are pleased to be working with an industry leader, and look forward to bringing our business units online to achieve our strategic goals of cost effective service excellence."

"Smithfield's commitment to customer service is well known," said Kevin Lynch, president and chief executive officer of Nistevo. "We are pleased to have been selected to support their strategic initiative and welcome them to our growing community of shippers and carriers."

About Smithfield Foods

Based in Smithfield, Virginia, Smithfield Foods is the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. The company processes 20 million hogs and raises 12 million annually. Its collection of well-known brands includes Smithfield Premium, Smithfield Lean Generation, John Morrell, Gwaltney, Schneiders, Patrick Cudahy, Krakus, and Stefano's, to name just a few. Since 1981, the company has made some 25 acquisitions to expand geographically and diversify into new product segments. By acquiring Moyer Packing Company and Packerland Holdings in fiscal 2002, Smithfield Foods became the fifth-largest beef producer in the United States.

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