Coronavirus Should Meat Packing Plants Be Forced To Open?

No more bacon! Vegetarians rejoice!

Tell me it's not true.

There has been a lot of news last week about meat processing plants closing due to high levels of coronavirus

infections amongst employees, meat becoming unavailable in some markets, and the federal government forcing meat processing plants to stay open.

My initial response to the government's forcing of meat packing plants to remain open was one of relief. Relief that meat will continue flowing to the markets. I have noticed over the past week that meat prices have gone up and fewer meat cuts available including chicken. Surprisingly, there has been plenty of pork even though these were some of the first plants to close.

That last line gives me pause. Was Tyson's CEO letter in the papers about the food chain breaking disingenuous as the meat packing plants' union claims. A tactic to increase prices, force workers to go to back to work without adequate protections, and to continue to be able to ship one-tenth of the U.S. pork supply to China.

Or is there a true threat to the nation's meat supply? When some of the plants closed, farmers reported having to kill mature livestock as they were unable to send them for processing because they had to make space for baby livestock. This signifies that some farmers and ranchers are at risk of going bankrupt if the plants remain closed, another threat to the meat supply.

And how many meat packing plants can be closed before there is a legitimate threat to the meat supply. The Big 3 automakers in Detroit have stopped making cars because all of their plants in North America have been closed since the end of March due to safety concerns. Even if the meat packing plants are unsafe, realistically they cannot all be closed until  a vaccine is created.

This is a very tough dilemma.

I feel for the meat packing plant workers, as a I do for grocery store workers. These are essential jobs that benefit and are necessary for the health of all Americans and must remain open.

I also think employer's need to provide all the necessary precautions to keep its workers as safe as possible.

I read Tyson has installed plexiglass dividers between workers, provided them with masks and gloves, taken employee temperatures daily, staggered schedules, converted some employees into social distance monitors, as well as other measures. I hope that all plants are providing these measures.

That the companies were not doing this before the media cast light on the problems of plant closures is sad.

I hope that since America is watching, the working conditions for the employees will improve now and going forward and allow the employees to stay healthy and keep bringing home the bacon.

What do you think?

Take care and be safe.

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