After President Donald Trump forced meat processing plants to stay open last month, nearly 600 meat processing workers have contracted COVID-19 at a North Carolina Tyson Foods factory.
While Tyson is one of the U.S.’ largest producers and marketings of beef, chicken, and pork, on Wednesday (May 20), it reported that it shut down operations at two of its three Wilkesboro complexes for deep cleaning, this after 570 of its 2,244 workers were diagnosed with the novel virus after mass testing.
In addition to the massive outbreak at its North Carolina location, Tyson has also seen hundreds of cases at its plants in Pasco, Washington; Madison, Nebraska, and Waterloo, Iowa. Furthermore, the reported cases arrive after Trump signed an executive order forcing meat production plants to remain open to avoid food shortages.
Moreover, Senior Vice President of Health and Safety for Tyson Foods Tom Brower, has since stated, “We are working closely with local health departments to protect our team members and their families, and to help manage the spread of the virus in our communities. We are using the most up-to-date data and resources to support our team members, and we are committed to ensuring they feel safe and secure when they come to work.”
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