Imagine a company that makes food products helping to make car parts! The reality of it was announced this week during Hormel Foods Corp.

Friday, February 02, 2001

Imagine a company that makes food products helping to make car parts! The reality of it was announced this week during Hormel Foods Corp.’s annual stockholders meeting.

The announcement in a story in this newspaper was picked up by The Associated Press and was sent out on national business wires. It was an interesting story indeed that captured a lot of eyes.

Joel W. Johnson, Hormel’s chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer, told stockholders Tuesday night how the company has forged a relationship with General Motors to develop an animal protein in the manufacturing of cast metal parts such as automobile engine blocks.

In the past, chemicals have been used to bind sand to the molds. However, the chemicals are not recyclable and create a pollution problem. General Motors Research found a solution in 1996 in which collagen, an animal protein, works best. It also determined a company such as Hormel – with its pork and turkey slaughtering operations – had the best access to the raw materials to make what it calls GMBOND.

Hormel worked out an exclusive deal to make the product and has installed the necessary production equipment.

"Who would have guessed that a food product would be used in the production of your automobile’s engine block?" Johnson told stockholders.

Hormel has proved its diversification in food products. They are to be congratulated in moving toward a new direction that also helps the environment.