i toured a beef processing plant during covid-19

When our small group of Washington beef and agriculture representatives arrived at the facility in Wallula, Wash., plant manager Brad Anderson greeted us. We awkwardly avoided shaking hands. We masked up and made small talk about the cattle markets and how things are going right now as we waited for Washington State Department of Agriculture Director Derek Sandison to join us. I hadn’t been out and about enough since Mid-March to actually wear a mask yet. I probably should have given this a dry run. I gauged how much my glasses might fog up when I tried to speak and attempted to adjust both without touching my face.

At the plant check-in, we signed in, provided our identification and proceeded through a temporary tent where everyone entering – employees, contractors, or guests like us, are given a temperature screening. No one with a temperature at or above 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit may enter the facility.

If an employee reporting for their shift has a high fever, or other symptoms, they proceed to the Matrix Medical Network mobile health screening unit located right outside the plant door. This third-party medical screening provider then makes the determination if the employee should resume work, go home, or be assisted in contacting a healthcare provider, taking the decision out of the plant’s hands. At the end of April, the entire facility was suspended for about two weeks to accommodate COVID-19 testing of the entire facility’s workforce – roughly 1,480 employees and contractors. This testing, combined with workers being tested through their healthcare providers, resulted in 277 positive cases. Over half of those who tested positive did not display any symptoms, and over half are classified as recovered. Among these results, sadly there have been three COVID-19 linked deaths of Tyson plant workers. Employees who test positive are provided paid leave and may return to work only when CDC and Tyson criteria are met.

While the plant was down for testing, Tyson worked with the Walla Walla County Department of Community Health (WWCDCH) to implement additional protective measures plant-wide. The plant resumed limited operations on Tuesday, May 5. Production ramped up slowly the first week but is gradually increasing as more healthy team members return to work.

Operations Manager Jorge Guzman was our tour guide. We donned our white frocks, helmets, hair nets, and one earplug. On the other side, I slipped an earpiece around my ear somewhere under the layers of protective gear, connected to a small receiver that reminded me of an iPod Shuffle. This audio allowed us to hear Jorge, through a mask, over the din of processing equipment, without needing to be close to each other. Even our tour was designed with social distancing in mind.

We began our tour where boxed beef awaits shipment to customers. I didn’t need to hear Jorge’s explanation of what we saw. The three-level cold storage facility felt empty. Because it was. The space can house 50,000 boxes, but the pre-shipment inventory of beef boxes totaled only about 8,000 this day. These empty racks were the result of the slower processing volumes and suspended production due to testing and additional sanitizing and cleaning. The gaps in the beef supply shoppers are seeing in grocery store meat cases is a direct result of the effort to fight the spread of COVID-19 in processing plants across the nation, while still getting beef to the market.   While it’s not ideal for any beef processing plant to be offline or slowed, the team at Tyson is clear eyed to purpose: to keep their workforce safe and healthy. Anderson summed it up,

But not all employees are comfortable with showing up to work in the middle of a pandemic. Human Resources Manager David Tobias said roughly 10 percent of the regular workforce is not reporting for duty for any number of reasons, fear being one. As we walked down the line where beef chucks (the shoulder area) are deboned, an advanced knife-skillset position, some partitioned stations were noticeably empty.

It’s hard to say what will make all workers feel ready and willing to come into the plant and do their jobs without hesitation or fear. The new health and safety measures will be monitored and evaluated to determine if it is enough to keep workers healthy. The Walla Walla County Department of Community Health has an open door to visit and inspect the plant without appointment or pre-notification. The bottom line of all this investment and collaboration between beef companies, public health authorities, and lawmakers is that it must result in a real reduction in the risk and danger to the workforce. Looking long term, it’s likely many of these health precautions will become permanent.

“We want to instill confidence in our employees that they’re returning to a safe work environment,” said Anderson. “We’re also grateful for the support from local health officials and all who have helped keep our team members and communities safe.”

If beef processing companies and public health authorities cannot figure this out, it paints a grim picture for both consumers and the farmers and ranchers who raise beef. This presents a unique challenge to the market for beef cattle in the fall, when many Pacific Northwest ranchers are ready to sell their calves after they have grazed all summer. The cattle that cannot be harvested today because of the processing slowdown will still be taking up space in cattle finishing feed yards, narrowing the marketing opportunities for the animals ready to move up the chain. 

While what’s happening here at the plant, and meat processing facilities across the country has a circular ripple out to consumers and the supply chain, the tour and the focus here at the plant is on the issue at hand – employee safety from COVID-19 while continuing operations. The journey of beef as a food is a great example of how we are all linked. While we’re enveloped in an ongoing public health and economic crisis where we don’t know what comes next, the least, even perhaps the most we can do right now is to just be thankful and acknowledge that there are people showing up to do the work it takes to get food like beef to us each day.

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- Bridget Coon 

Bridget is an eastern Washington beef cattle rancher, mom, and digital media consultant for the Washington State Beef Commission