Despite the high cost of feed hammering the country's hog production unit Smithfield Foods Inc., the largest US hog producer and pork processor Tuesday posted a smaller-than-anticipated fiscal fourth-quarter loss, due to stable pork sales. 

For the quarter ended May 3, the Smithfield, Virginia-based company posted a $78.8 million - or 55 cents a share - loss, as against a $2.4 million - or 2 cents a share - profit that it reported the previous year. The company's loss figure was smaller than the 60 cents a share loss expected by analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. 

While Smithfield's hog unit lost almost $171 million during the quarter, in comparison to the $129 million year-before loss, the company said that the swine flu spate did not have any considerable bearing on results. .

According to a statement by the Smithfield CEO Larry Pope, not only did the company's packaged meats business do well during the quarter, it was also expected to produce strong results in the future. 

Saying that Smithfeild intends moving into 2010 with the manifold objectives - like restructuring its pork business, reducing debt, improving liquidity and strengthening its balance sheet - Pope added: "This is a dynamic the food industry has never before faced and has the unintended consequence of increasing food costs for the American consumer in the midst of a global recession."