A New Jersey ice cream production plant was issued a fine of $103,476 by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) after a worker had a fingertip amputated while trying to clear a jammed machine. 

OSHA announced Monday that Mister Cookie Face LLC was cited for machine safety hazards at its Lakewood, NJ plant for failing to prevent unintentional equipment startups during servicing (lockout/tagout), neglecting to ensure that workers used the proper personal protective equipment, failing to provide an eyewash station in areas where employees worked with corrosive chemicals, and exposing workers to blood borne pathogens hazards. 

The sanitation worker had a fingertip amputated and fractured a finger Mister Cookie Face plant in Lakewood.

“This injury could have been avoided with worker training and lockout/tagoout procedures,” OSHA Marlton Area Office Director Paula Dixon-Roderick said in a statement. “Employers who implement an effective safety and health program can ensure that workplace hazards are identified and corrected to prevent worker injuries or fatalities.”

Mister Cookie Face has 15 business days after receiving the citations to comply, challenge the findings before an independent board, or request an informal meeting with an OSHA area director. 

The ice cream manufacturing firm is owned by Fieldbrook Foods.

For more news headlines, articles, and equipment reviews, visit our Equipment Zones