Document and Entity Information Document	3 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2011	Sep. 06, 2011
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	SMITHFIELD FOODS INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000091388
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--04-29
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Jul. 31, 2011
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		163,334,020