XML 55 R36.htm IDEA: XBRL DOCUMENT
v3.8.0.1

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Details) $ in Millions |  | 12 Months Ended | 24 Months Ended |
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Oct. 28, 2016 USD ($) | Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item | Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) | Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($) | Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) | Dec. 31, 2007 USD ($)
Operations of Seaboard Corporation and its Subsidiaries |  |  |  |  |  |
Percentage of ownership interest held by Seaboard Flour LLC and SFC Preferred LLC (Parent Companies) |  | 76.00% |  |  | 76.00% |
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets |  |  |  |  |  |
Goodwill |  | $ 22 | $ 19 |  | $ 22 |
Impairment charges |  | 0 |  |  |  |
Changes in the asset retirement obligation |  |  |  |  |  |
Beginning balance |  | 19 | 18 |  | 18 |
Accretion expense |  | 2 | 1 |  |  |
Liability for additional lagoons placed in service |  | 1 |  |  |  |
Ending balance |  | 22 | 19 | $ 18 | $ 22 |
Cash and Cash Equivalents |  |  |  |  |  |
Interest |  | 30 | 29 | 17 |  |
Income taxes (net of refunds) |  | 32 | 31 | 60 |  |
Supplemental Non-Cash Transactions |  |  |  |  |  |
Non-cash, pay-in-kind interest income and accretion of discount recognized on a note receivable from an affiliate |  | $ 3 | 3 | $ 17 |  |
Foreign Currency Transactions and Translation |  |  |  |  |  |
Number of consolidated subsidiaries using local currency as their functional currency | item |  | 4 |  |  |  |
Number of non-controlled, non-consolidated affiliates using local currency as their functional currency | item |  | 11 |  |  |  |
Minimum |  |  |  |  |  |
Principles of Consolidation and Investments in Affiliates |  |  |  |  |  |
Time lag for reporting financial information |  | 1 month |  |  |  |
Property, Plant and Equipment |  |  |  |  |  |
Useful Lives |  | 3 years |  |  |  |
Maximum |  |  |  |  |  |
Principles of Consolidation and Investments in Affiliates |  |  |  |  |  |
Time lag for reporting financial information |  | 3 months |  |  |  |
Property, Plant and Equipment |  |  |  |  |  |
Useful Lives |  | 30 years |  |  |  |
Belarina |  |  |  |  |  |
Supplemental Non-Cash Transactions |  |  |  |  |  |
Acquisition of business, cash consideration | $ 0 |  |  |  |  |
Pork |  |  |  |  |  |
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets |  |  |  |  |  |
Goodwill |  |  |  |  |  | $ 12
Increase in goodwill |  |  | 6 |  |  |
Commodity Trading and Milling |  |  |  |  |  |
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets |  |  |  |  |  |
Increase in goodwill |  | $ 3 | $ 1 |  |  |
Commodity Trading and Milling | Belarina |  |  |  |  |  |
Principles of Consolidation and Investments in Affiliates |  |  |  |  |  |
Time lag for reporting financial information | 3 months |  |  |  |  |
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets |  |  |  |  |  |
Goodwill | $ 1 |  |  |  |  |
Supplemental Non-Cash Transactions |  |  |  |  |  |
Acquisition of business, cash consideration | $ 0 |  |  |  |  |

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_ConsolidationAndInvestmentsInAffiliatesAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Represents the number of consolidated subsidiaries using local currency as their functional currency. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_NumberOfConsolidatedSubsidiariesUsingLocalCurrencyAsFunctionalCurrency
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | xbrli:integerItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Represents number of non-controlled, non-consolidated affiliates using local currency as their functional currency. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_NumberOfNonControlledNonConsolidatedAffiliatesUsingLocalCurrencyAsFunctionalCurrency
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | xbrli:integerItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_OperationsAndSubsidiariesAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Interest received other than in cash for example on a note receivable from an affiliate. As a noncash item, it is subtracted from net income when calculating cash provided by or used in operations using the indirect method. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_PaidInKindInterestIncome
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | credit
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Represents the percentage of ownership interest in the entity held by the parent company. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_PercentageOfOwnershipInterestByParent
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | num:percentItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | instant

X
- Definition Represents the time lag for reporting financial information of subsidiaries and affiliates. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | seb_SubsidiariesAndAffiliatesReportingPeriodLag
Namespace Prefix: | seb_
Data Type: | xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition The carrying amount of a liability for an asset retirement obligation. An asset retirement obligation is a legal obligation associated with the disposal or retirement of a tangible long-lived asset that results from the acquisition, construction or development, or the normal operations of a long-lived asset, except for certain obligations of lessees. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 410 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (c) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6392692&loc=d3e7535-110849 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_AssetRetirementObligation
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | credit
Period Type: | instant

X
- Definition Amount of accretion expense recognized during the period that is associated with an asset retirement obligation. Accretion expense measures and incorporates changes due to the passage of time into the carrying amount of the liability. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 410 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (c)(3) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6392692&loc=d3e7535-110849 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 410 -SubTopic 20 -Section 45 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6392676&loc=d3e7480-110848 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_AssetRetirementObligationAccretionExpense
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | debit
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Amount of asset retirement obligations incurred during the period. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 410 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (c)(1) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6392692&loc=d3e7535-110849 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_AssetRetirementObligationLiabilitiesIncurred
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | credit
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition A roll forward is a reconciliation of a concept from the beginning of a period to the end of a period. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_AssetRetirementObligationRollForwardAnalysisRollForward
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_CashAndCashEquivalentsAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_ForeignCurrencyTransactionAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Amount after accumulated impairment loss of an asset representing future economic benefits arising from other assets acquired in a business combination that are not individually identified and separately recognized. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (a) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35741047&loc=d3e13816-109267 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 45 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6388280&loc=d3e13770-109266 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 45 -Paragraph 5 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=77989000&loc=SL49117168-202975 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_Goodwill
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | debit
Period Type: | instant

X
- Definition Amount of increase in asset representing future economic benefits arising from other assets acquired in a business combination that are not individually identified and separately recognized resulting from a business combination. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (b) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35741047&loc=d3e13816-109267 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_GoodwillAcquiredDuringPeriod
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | debit
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Total loss recognized during the period from the impairment of goodwill plus the loss recognized in the period resulting from the impairment of the carrying amount of intangible assets, other than goodwill. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_GoodwillAndIntangibleAssetImpairment
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | debit
Period Type: | duration

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_GoodwillAndIntangibleAssetImpairmentAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition The amount of cash paid during the current period to foreign, federal, state, and local authorities as taxes on income, net of any cash received during the current period as refunds for the overpayment of taxes. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 230 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=98513485&loc=d3e4297-108586 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_IncomeTaxesPaidNet
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | credit
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Amount of cash paid, after deduction of cash paid for capitalized interest, for interest. Includes, but is not limited to, payment to settle zero-coupon bond for accreted interest of debt discount and debt instrument with insignificant coupon interest rate in relation to effective interest rate of borrowing attributable to accreted interest of debt discount. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 230 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=98513485&loc=d3e4297-108586 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_InterestPaidNet
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | credit
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition The cash outflow associated with the acquisition of business during the period. The cash portion only of the acquisition price. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 230 -SubTopic 10 -Section 45 -Paragraph 13 -Subparagraph (b) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=98514028&loc=d3e3213-108585 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_PaymentsToAcquireBusinessesGross
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type: | credit
Period Type: | duration

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Useful life of long lived, physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale, in 'PnYnMnDTnHnMnS' format, for example, 'P1Y5M13D' represents the reported fact of one year, five months, and thirteen days. Examples include, but not limited to, land, buildings, machinery and equipment, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentUsefulLife
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_SupplementalCashFlowInformationAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_RangeAxis=us-gaap_MinimumMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_RangeAxis=us-gaap_MaximumMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_BusinessAcquisitionAxis=seb_BelarinaAlimentosMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_StatementBusinessSegmentsAxis=seb_PorkSegmentMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_StatementBusinessSegmentsAxis=seb_CommodityTradingAndMillingMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |