Even as millions of Swift & Co. "Butterball" turkeys were being carved last week, the Chicago-based meat-packing colossus announced that it had little to be thankful for this year. In fiscal 1968, which ended in October, sales dropped 5% to $2.8 billion, and Swift suffered a $42 million overall loss.
Swift's depressing balance sheet is a direct result of deep cuts into the market made by streamlined and strategically located smaller packers, which now number 4,000. As in steel and some other basic industries, the moderately sized companies have proved to be nimbler and more imaginative than some of the hidebound...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
