Seaboard fails to delay US hog slaughter limits
A US judge has denied Seaboard Foods’ attempt to delay the implementation of a federal court decision that would force the pig producer to slow the speed of hog slaughtering at its Oklahoma pork processing plant.
24 May 2021
3 minute read
By: Reuters reports that Seaboard Foods, the second-biggest pig producer in the US, sought to pursue a 10-1/2-month delay to the decision after US District Judge Joan Ericksen in Minnesota ruled against a Trump administration policy that allowed pork plants to slaughter pigs as fast as they want, as long as they prevent food contamination.
As the first US pork company to invest in machinery to run slaughter line speeds faster under the rule, Seaboard stands to lose from the decision.
Ericksen ruled on 20 May that Seaboard's attempt to intervene in the case came too late, though. The company, owned by Seaboard Corp, declined to comment.
A lawsuit brought against the US Department of Agriculture by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union challenged the 2019 rule over concerns about worker safety. Seaboard workers told Reuters the faster line speeds increased injuries at the company's plant in Guymon, Oklahoma.
