Document and Entity Information	6 Months Ended
	May 01, 2011	Jun. 05, 2011 Common stock.	Jun. 05, 2011 Common stock, non-voting
Entity Registrant Name	HORMEL FOODS CORP /DE/
Entity Central Index Key	0000048465
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	May 01, 2011
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--10-30
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		267,207,133	0
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2