Tyson Foods Inc. and Cargill, two of the largest US meat processors, don't think federal inspectors are going to disappear because of mandatory budget cuts --anyway, not before April at the earliest, they believe.
"We are hopeful USDA will formulate a common sense plan that will not interrupt the production of food for Americans and consumers around the world who enjoy US meat products," said Mike Martin, a spokesman for Cargill, in an e-mail. Gary Mickelson, spokesman for Tyson, sent a similar e-mail.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) was considering furloughing inspectors for 15 days as part of automatic federal budget cuts that took effect March 1, the National Chicken Council said in a Feb. 11 letter with other trade groups. Meat, poultry and egg processors are prohibited from operating without the presence of federal inspectors, which may halt production at some plants. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Feb. 5 in a letter to Senator Barbara Mikulski, chair of the appropriations committee, that such a furlough could cost the industry more than $10 billion in production losses and workers more than $400 million in wages.
Cargill is waiting for the USDA to determine its actual plan, Martin said. Tyson will develop contingency plans after getting more details from the USDA, Mickelson said. Food inspectors were "deemed essential" during previous budgetary impasses, Tom Super, a spokesman for the National Chicken Council, said in an e-mail.
The USDA is responsible for the safety of meat, eggs and poultry products with about 8,400 personnel inspecting the nation's 6,300 slaughterhouses and processing plants. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration handles other products that account for about 80% of the US food supply.
