Inventories (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Jul. 04, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
At lower of LIFO cost or market:
Live hogs and materials	$ 212,405	$ 208,641
Fresh pork and materials	27,140	28,573
Inventories at lower of LIFO cost or market, Gross	239,545	237,214
LIFO adjustment	(30,992)	(36,560)
Total inventories at lower of LIFO cost or market	208,553	200,654
At lower of FIFO cost or market:
Grains, oilseeds and other commodities	266,388	320,066
Sugar produced and in process	51,069	48,863
Other	59,785	57,344
Total inventories at lower of FIFO cost or market	377,242	426,273
Grain, flour and feed at lower of weighted average cost or market	79,175	109,375
Total inventories	$ 664,970	$ 736,302