Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/02/2025

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I ordered a pack of Smithfield Black Forest Ham, 1 pound, lunch meat! When got the package of lunch meat, home was a good weight until opened! 4.1 ounces of water! And very wet meat!

  Business Response

  Date: 01/02/2025

  The moisture in the package is weep, or purge. Below is information from the USDA regarding this: 

  At the grocery store, the products are displayed in refrigerator cases as cold as 26 °F. At this temperature, the cells of the product will "loosen up" somewhat and some of the moisture naturally present in the meat will melt and gradually seep out. The production of this visible meat or poultry juice is known in the industry as weep or purge. It occurs during display of retail cuts, during shipment of wholesale cuts, and during storage of cuts prior to shipment.
  In a home refrigerator set at 40 °F or below, even more liquid will seep out of the product. The longer a product sits in the refrigerator, the more liquid will be released from the muscle cells.
  Packaging of Meat and Poultry
  Some meat and poultry products are vacuum-packed to prolong the storage times. Products are packaged in air- and leak-proof packages under vacuum, and, in some cases, a specific gas will be pumped into the package to preserve flavor and quality. While the package sits in the refrigerator case, the vacuum is still in effect, extracting the juices out of the meat. Because these packages are airtight and leak proof, the juices accumulate in the package. In contrast, the plastic wrapped packaging, typically used by most supermarkets, allows a certain amount of evaporation.

  Because the consumer is not satisfied with the product, we will gladly issue a coupon to replace it. Please ask the consumer to contact us directly and we can take care of this for them. They can reach us at ************* 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/20/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  **** ****** ***** which is part of smithfoods sent me 2 coupons
  for Product that was no good. The Coupons are unusable within 500
  miles of where I live and where I live . I have let ***** *******
  know 3 times and now she wont respond. She is getting my emails
  but just ignoring them.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/13/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 8, 2022/10/03) */
  Contact Name and Title: ***** *******
  Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
  Contact Email: ********@smithfield.com
  Mr. ****** contacted us on 07/25/2022 and reported receiving a 12-ounce package of **** ******* Bacon that was mostly fat. As a goodwill gesture, we mailed two John Morrell coupons to Mr. ******. on 08/25/2022, Mr. ****** sent us an email asking where to purchase John Morrell. I replied on the same day ask asked which products he was interested in purchasing so I could search. Mr. ****** asked for Ham or Bacon. My reply, on 08/25/2022 (the same day I received his inquiry), is copied below:
  
  Thank you! I checked our recent shipments and see bacon was recently sent to the UNFI Northern warehouse. Cub Foods in MN orders from this warehouse.
  I don't see any shipments yet for **** ******* Hams. This is usually a seasonal product with orders shipping before Thanksgiving.
  
  I hope this helps!
  
  ***** *******
  Consumer Affairs