 Kenneth Sullivan has been the president and chief executive officer of Smithfield Foods since December 2015 and executive director of WH Group since January 2016.The company traces its history to 1936, when Joseph W. Luter Sr. and his son, Joseph W. Luter Jr., opened the Smithfield Packing Company in Smithfield, Virginia.The men were working for the meatpacker P. D. Gwaltney, Jr. & Co. when they set up the company; Joseph W. Luter Sr. was a salesman and Joseph W. Luter Jr. the general manager.