Excerpt from the report Introduction: Most meatpacking operations are performed by two closely related industries--livestock slaughter and meat processing. Traditionally they have been joint operations, and most meatpacking firms still perform both operations. However, some slaughtering firms do not process meat, and many meat processing firms do not slaughter livestock. Though many other firms may slaughter and process, they confine their operations primarily to one or the other. Thus, the structural characteristics of the two industries are not necessarily the same. The structural characteristics of livestock slaughter firms help describe an industry participating as a buyer in the livestock market. On the other hand, the characteristics of meat processing firms help describe an industry participating as a supplier in the meat market.