April 3, 2020
Sanderson Farms to reduce chicken production in top chicken producing US state due to COVID-19
The major US poultry company has sent 415 slaughterhouse workers home from its Georgia facility as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19, reported Reuters.
Joe Sanderson, Sanderson Farms' chief executive said the company move will cut chicken processing in its Moultrie, Georgia facility from 1.3 million birds to 1 million birds per week over the next four weeks.
He said the workers live in a COVID-19 hotspot at Dougherty County, but the workers have no symptoms, adding that the company is hiring more workers.
The move by Sanderson Farms could affect its margins and represents the first sign of issues in the US food supply chain as meat demand has surged in retail.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected US meat and poultry processors, with workers reporting ill and foodservice demand fallen drastically with restaurants and bars shut down.
According to industry group the National Chicken Council, the United States is the biggest producer of poultry, producing 9 billion chickens in 2019 and second biggest exporter of poultry meat. 15% of the country's chicken production comes from Georgia.
Dougherty County, Georgia has reported 500 COVID-19 cases and the most deaths in the state.
Sanderson Farms said it has sent 204 workers to quarantine with pay as they showed COVID-19 symptoms. 15 workers have tested positive. No plants have been closed.
The company can process 13.6 million chickens weekly. It has shifted production towards retail, raising retail estimates by 3.1% and dropping foodservice projections by 3.1% in its fiscal third quarter from a February estimate.
Sanderson Farms said its foodservice business has dropped 60% to 65%. It has reduced the number of eggs to be incubated for restaurants and foodservice companies.
- Reuters