By Ryan McCarthy and Sam Danley

KANSAS CITY, MO. — Meatpoultry.com will be tracking the state of plant closures throughout the United States and Canada.

The map below will be updated as needed. If you know of a closure that should added or updated, please contact Ryan McCarthy (rmccarthy@sosland.com), MEAT+POULTRY.

Click on the map to be taken to the original Meat and Poultry article where you can: Click the + button in the right-hand corner of the map to zoom in and see individual plants. Click on the location for more details about the plant.

The operational status of each plant is listed (either closed, reopened or limited production) and numbers on the map indicate multiple plants in the same area. 

May 21

JBS Canada is increasing production at its beef plant in Brooks, Alberta. The company previously scaled down to one shift on April 22 following an outbreak of COVID-19 among employees. The plant remained open with limited capacity while a nearby Cargill plant in High River, Alberta, closed for two weeks last month. Together, the two plants process nearly 70% of Canada’s beef.

A Bristol Seafood processing plant in Portland, Maine, closed earlier this week.

May 19

Cargill reopened its beef plant in Schuyler, Neb., on May 18. 

May 15

Farbest Foods turkey facility will be closed in Huntingburg, Indiana following positive COVID-19 tests.

May 13

Specialty Foods Group reopened its meat processing plant in Owensboro, Ky.

A Johnsonville sausage plant in Holton, Kan. closed its facility after positive tests of COVID-19

May 11

Hormel Foods Corp. reopened its Jennie-O Turkey Store plant in Melrose, Minn. Hormel subsidiary Alma Foods LLC also reopened its plant in Alma, Kan. 

May 8

Hormel Foods Corp. reopened one of its Jennie-O Turkey Store plants in Willmar, Minn.

Tyson Foods, Inc. reopened its beef facility in Dakota City, Neb.

Smithfield Foods resumed limited operations at its pork plant in Sioux Falls, SD.

May 7

Tyson Foods Inc.’s pork plant in Waterloo, Iowa, will reopen today two weeks after operations were suspended. The company’s frozen chicken facility in Portland, Maine, also reopened after closing May 1.

JBS USA reopened a portion of its pork processing plant in Worthington, Minn., with reduced staff.

Conagra Brands Inc., resumed operations at its Bird’s Eye frozen foods plant in Darien, Wis. The company’s other shuttered frozen meals facility, located in Marshall, Mo., reopened May 4.

May 6

Tyson Fresh Meats, the beef and pork processing subsidiary of Tyson Foods Inc., announced that the facility would resume production on May 7. 

May 5

JBS USA stated that it will reopen its beef processing plant in Green Bay, Wis., in phases following a coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Tyson Foods Inc. closed its pork facility in Madison, Neb. and Cargill closed its beef plant in Schuyler, Neb.

May 4

Tyson Foods, Inc. subsidiary, Tyson Fresh Meats, announced its plans to resume limited operations at its Logansport, Ind., facility, during the week of May 4.

Rochelle Foods, a subsidiary of Hormel Foods Corp., planned to reopen its manufacturing plant in the town of Rochelle, Ill., on May 4.

May 1

Smithfield Foods Inc. will resume operations at its Monmouth, Ill., facility starting May 2 

Tyson Foods, Inc. closed its Dakota City, Neb., beef facility through May 4.

April 30

Tyson Fresh Meats, the beef and pork unit of Tyson Foods Inc., announced that its Dakota City, Neb., beef facility would wind down production and temporarily pause operations May 1 through May 4. 

Tyson also closed its poultry plant in Robards, Ky., for at least four days.

April 29

President Donald Trump issued an executive order, citing the Defense Production Act of 1950, to keep meat processing plants open to hold off possible shortages of beef, pork, chicken and other meats.

Under the order, “the Department of Agriculture is directed to ensure America’s meat and poultry processors continue operations uninterrupted to the maximum extent possible.”

According to the executive order, meat and poultry processing plants are classified as “critical infrastructure.” Closing meat processing plants can quickly have an impact on the nation’s food supply chain, Trump said.

“To combat this crisis and ensure the adequate availability of food for the American people, it is vital that these processors are able to remain operating at this critical moment, while also taking steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in their facilities.”

During a meeting at the White House on April 28, Trump said “there’s plenty of supply,” but that supply chains had hit a “roadblock.”

April 28

John Tyson, chairman of the board with Tyson Foods Inc., took out a full-page advertisement in The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette over the weekend to express his concerns about the food supply chain during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. 

“The food supply chain is breaking,” wrote John Tyson, chairman of Tyson Foods, adding that supply of the company’s products at grocery stores will be limited until facilities are back up and running. Shuttered plants will lead to millions of livestock slaughtered as farmers are unable to sell to meat processors, the ad said.

The US Department of Agriculture plans to buy $3 billion in fresh produce, dairy and meat from farmers to reduce waste and stabilize retail prices. The agency forecasted 2020 beef prices will climb 1% to 2%, poultry 1.5% and pork between 2% and 3%.

April 27

JBS USA announced the temporary closure of its beef production plant in Green Bay, Wis., following a coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Hormel Foods Corp closed its two Jennie-O Turkey Store plants in Willmar, Minn. 

Starting the week of April 27, Smithfield Foods Inc. will suspend operations at its Monmouth, Ill. and St. Charles, III.

April 24

Tyson Foods Inc. closed its beef plant in Pasco, Wash. The company, which previously shuttered pork plants in Indiana and Iowa this week, did not provide a timeline for reopening the facility.

Indiana Packers Corp. (IPC) announced on April 24, that it began winding down production at the pork plant and would close the facility for up to two weeks. 

April 23

Conagra Brands Inc. suspended most operations at its Birds Eye frozen foods plant in Darien, Wis., through at least April 27.

Tyson Foods, Inc., closed its pork processing facility in Logansport, Ind. The facility has been running at limited production since April 20 and is expected to stop production on or before April 25.

Comfrey Prime Pork closed its pork plant in Windom, Minn., through the end of the week.

April 22

Tyson Foods, Inc. indefinitely suspended operations at its pork plant in Waterloo, Iowa.

JBS USA limited operations at its beef plant in Brooks, Alberta.

April 21

A Conagra Brands Inc. frozen meal facility in Marshall, Mo., will remain shuttered until at least April 27. The plant closed April 17.

JBS USA indefinitely closed its pork plant in Worthington, Minn., due to an outbreak of COVID-19 among workers.

Don Miguel Foods, LLC, a subsidiary of MegaMex Foods Corp., closed its Mexican prepared foods manufacturing plant in Dallas for two weeks.

April 20

Specialty meats processor Burgers’ Smokehouse closed its facility in California, Mo., through April 20 after three employees tested positive for COVID-19.

April 18

Hormel Foods Corp. closed its meat plant in Rochelle, Ill., for two weeks. 

April 17

Specialty meats processor Burgers’ Smokehouse closed its facility in California, Mo., through April 20 after three employees tested positive for COVID-19.

April 16

Smithfield Foods Inc. shuttered two plants that process bacon and ham after previously closing a hog slaughterhouse in South Dakota. A bacon and sausage facility in Cudahy, Wis., closed for two weeks alongside a spiral and smoked ham plant in Martin City, Mo.

Officials at the Tyson Fresh Meats pork plant in Columbus Junction, Iowa, confirmed the facility will remain closed indefinitely after 86 additional cases of COVID-19 were found to be related to an outbreak at the plant.

April 14

JBS USA temporarily shuttered a beef production facility in Greeley, Colo., through April 24 due to an outbreak of COVID-19 among employees and the surrounding community. The company shut its beef plant in Souderton, Pa., until April 16, after previously cutting production.

National Beef Packing Co., LLC, announced its plant in Tama, Iowa, will remain closed through April 20. The facility previously closed on April 6.

April 13

Smithfield Foods announced its pork production plant in Sioux Falls, SD, will close indefinitely

April 10

Smithfield Foods closed its pork plant in Sioux Falls, SD, on April 9 after more than 80 workers tested positive for COVID-19.

April 9

West Liberty Foods closed its turkey, beef, pork and chicken facility in West Liberty, Iowa. It will remain closed for three days.

April 8

Maple Leaf Foods, Inc. closed its poultry plant in Brampton, Ont.

April 7

Cargill closed its case-ready beef and pork facility in Hazleton, Pa. Tyson Foods Inc. suspended production at its pork plant in Columbus Junction, Iowa.

April 8

National Beef Packing Co., LLC, suspended cattle slaughter at its plant in Tama, Iowa,

April 2

Sanderson Farms cut poultry production at its plant in Moultrie, Ga., for four weeks after more than a dozen employees test positive for COVID-19.

March 31

JBS USA cut production at a beef facility in Souderton, Pa., on March 31.

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