SMITHFIELD, Va., Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Smithfield Foods, Inc. announced today that several of its subsidiary companies, Smithfield Packing Company, Gwaltney of Portsmouth, Gwaltney of Smithfield and Smithfield Transportation, were the recipients of 2005 Governor's Environmental Excellence Awards in Virginia. Smithfield Packing Company received the bronze award for environmental programs for larger manufacturers in the state. For environmental projects, Smithfield subsidiaries Gwaltney of Portsmouth, Gwaltney of Smithfield and Smithfield Transportation all received silver awards and Smithfield Packing Company received a bronze award. The awards were announced at the 10th Annual Governor's Environmental Excellence Awards banquet yesterday at the Greater Richmond Convention Center. The 10th Annual Governor's Environmental Excellence Awards for Manufacturers were supported by Virginia's Governor, Secretary of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Virginia Manufacturers Association (VMA) Outreach. This award program encourages excellence in environmental management by recognizing achievements that go beyond compliance toward environmental stewardship. Since the inception of this program in 1995, VMA Outreach has facilitated the competition and hosted the presentation of the awards. This year was also special because the Virginia General Assembly codified the Governor's Environmental Excellence Awards as part of the Commonwealth's Environmental Excellence Program. "Smithfield is extremely proud of its employees' dedication to making the company a leader in environmental stewardship," said Dennis Treacy, Smithfield's Vice President of Environmental, Community and Government Affairs. "Smithfield is honored to receive these awards because they recognize the important achievements of our employees." Delegate Kirk Cox said in his special address to the audience, "There is a perception that there is only conflict between the environmental community, regulated community and legislature regarding how to protect the environment, but that way of thinking is disappearing. We all work together toward solutions. It is fitting that after 10 years this award receives recognition as a permanent part of Virginia's environmental excellence program." There were two categories for awards based on the size of the organization. The companies with 500 and more employees are considered large and those with fewer than 500 are considered small manufacturers. There are three levels of achievement in the program and project categories -- gold, silver, and bronze. Governor's Environmental Excellence Award applications are judged by an independent panel and numerically scored for achievement. DATASOURCE: Smithfield Foods, Inc. CONTACT: Keira Ullrich of Smithfield Foods, Inc., +1-212-758-2100, or Web site: http://www.smithfieldfoods.com/

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