Food Security: Meat Processing and Supply Chain Innovations During the Pandemic

By Vanessa Grossl, CSG policy analyst

Thousands of meat industry workers at hundreds of facilities across more than 23 states have now tested positive for COVID-19, raising serious concerns  for both food security and worker safety nationally, in a work environment where sick leave is rare.

Some workers have blamed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for not doing more to protect them in light of the pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and OSHA have recently released a set of guidelines and procedures meant to do more to protect workers, although these recommendations are voluntary and not enforceable. Tyson, the biggest U.S. meat processor, is still not offering paid sick days, but its CEO says it is “eliminating any punitive effect for missing work due to illness.” 

The threat of sick workers and food processing disruptions are just two factors leading to new supply chain initiatives, strategies, and policy changes at U.S. meat processing plants and across the entire food supply chain. 

Another factor came late last month when the president issued an exective order to use the Defense Production Act (DPA) to keep meat processing facilities open by deeming them essential businesses that feed America. The executive order is meant to help direct additional personal protective equipment (PPE) to the processing plants and to help prevent liability issues. It is also bringing additional pressures to facilities, some of  which workers have already begun to sue for failure to protect them from exposure to the deadly virus under working conditions that were in place prior to the executive order being implemented.        

Meat Processing Challenges & Solutions

Meat processing facilities have  begun to work in partnership with state and federal governments to secure COVID-19 tests for all employees. They are also having to navigate best practices and strategize to implement a variety of new patchwork safety policies that allow them to remain open including:

  • Increasing deep cleaning and sanitization measures as well as availability of hand sanitizer;
  • Installing additional physical barriers to enhance social distancing and isolating teams;
  • Temperature testing employees and waiving co-pays for COVID-19 testing; and
  • Encouraging mask-wearing at all times, even during breaks 

Worker unions have stepped in as advocates asking that employees be paid regular wages when/if plants have to be shut down temporarily, as well as suggesting such things as “hazard pay” on top of usual hourly rates.  Some say these seem like steep asks, considering that prior to COVID-19, even days missed for injuries that occurred on the job  were not typically paid in the meat packing industry. Workers have sometimes used the Family Medical Leave Act instead, if they know about it, after being injured on the job.  While it protects workers from being fired, it is often detrimental to families’ livelihoods since it entails an extended period without pay.

Workers are feeling a sense of relief as companies implement some of these measures and take other unprecedented steps toward greater worker financial security by enacting policies that:

  • Pay employees for any previously scheduled hours while temporary closures are in place to clean and install barriers;
  • Waive the waiting periods before providing short-term disability, which typically pays a portion of an employee’s wages; and 
  • Offer temporary wage increases and bonuses to help meet the increased demand for food products.

Supply Chain Challenges

While panic buying and food supply chain disruptions have contributed to meat being in short supply in recent weeks, it’s far from the only food product. Companies like Kraft, Campbell Soup, and General Mills, which have processing facilities around the globe are working to meet increasing demands  for certain products while relying on their extensive networks of distributors to help get products out to the stores. While shortages are typical in emergency situations like hurricanes, they are a little harder to ameliorate when they are occurring nationwide. The U.S. has one of the most efficient and effective supply chains in the world and stores continue to be restocked, albeit inconsistently, reports indicate.

How it All Began

The intricate food supply system that for decades had been based on simple economic principles like supply and demand was suddenly jolted as everyone from farmers to distributors have had to work inexhaustibly to try to prevent waste and get food into the hands of those who need it most. Supply chain issues have hit agricultural states the hardest.

  • Supply chain disruptions began when states started requiring schools, restaurants, and other food service providers, such as programs that feed the homeless, to close or alter their practices, nationwide.
  • Truckers have dealt with increasingly intense logistics and changes resulting in the shift in supply and demand.
  • Dairy farmers in Wisconsin, Vermont and elsewhere are being forced to dump millions of gallons of milk per day, as grocers limit the number of gallons that can be purchased by consumers.  Meanwhile, farmers are having to euthanize hogs as they grow too big for processing while many plants are shuttered due to worker illnesses and company attempts to meet the new CDC and OSHA guidelines meant to protect workers.
  • Distributors, with no restaurants or food service industry customers needing bulk orders delivered, have had to get creative in dividing out industrial-sized portions of staples to sell directly to consumers just to make ends meet.
  • Gourmet restaurants have had to start operating as butchers, offering prime cuts of meat, produce, and eggs to customers who prefer to prepare their own meal at home. Other restaurants have joined forces with food delivery apps to connect with more customers.
  • Grocers have seen patterns of food consumption change drastically as people purchase more nonperishables and less fresh fruits and vegetables, as consumers became reacquainted with their kitchens.  In stores where inventory processes were not automated, meeting demand has been a struggle.
  • On farms from Florida to California, where seeds had been planted and nourished long before the COVID-19 outbreak reached U.S. soil, fresh produce is wilting and being plowed over as farmers prepare to plant the next round of crops that they hope will sell in this evolving consumer atmosphere.

Solutions for the Future

The Consumer Brands Association, an industry trade group, has asked for emergency federal funding in the next coronavirus emergency package to help mitigate any supply chain problems and manage input shortages. The group has also asked the president to set up a group at the White House to help coordinate supply chain issues and crisis relief across the states while ensuring that new public health restrictions don’t interfere with supply chain efforts.  Meanwhile, unions continue to advocate for more public health guidelines with state officials, such as additional levels of PPE and stronger social distancing measures at plants.