Cargill Shutters PA Meat Plant Due to COVID-19 Cases

American agribusiness Cargill temporarily suspended work at its meat processing plant in Hazelton, PA on Tuesday after an unknown number of workers became infected with COVID-19, several local news organizations reported. 

“Our goal is to keep our 900 employees at this case-ready protein facility healthy and minimize risk within the Hazelton community, which has been greatly impacted by COVID-19,” Daniel Sullivan, media relations director for Cargill’s protein and animal health businesses, told the Hazelton Standard-Speaker. 

Cargill has not confirmed any cases among employees at the plant, but the newspaper said an undisclosed number of workers are infected. The Standard-Speaker interviewed several Cargill employees who are currently ill. 

“As we continue to prioritize the health and safety of Cargill employees, we have decided to temporarily close our Hazelton case-ready protein plant. This will allow us to minimize the impact of COVID-19 and continue to follow health department guidelines,” Cargill Protein said a statement in coverage by news website PAHomepage.com. 

It is unclear when the plant will resume operations, a company official said in a Wilkes-Barre Citizens’ Voice article. “Our facility will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so,” said Cargill Protein North America Lead Jon Nash said in the interview.  

The Hazelton plant employs about 800 workers. 

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