News Coronavirus
US consumers buy pigs directly from farmers
The spread of the coronavirus among slaughterhouse staff remains problematic. Pig farmers in the United States can no longer sell their pigs to slaughterhouses and in Minnesota pig farmers even sell their pigs directly to consumers.
The pig farmers cannot sell their animals to slaughterhouses and see the culling and composting of their pigs as the only way out. To prevent this, the livestock farmers are calling on consumers to buy the pigs directly. At the same time, consumers are concerned about meat shortages, which means the knife cuts both ways.
Maintaining pigs
The animals are sold for prices that are not cost-effective for the livestock farmer. Buying pigs is a good deal for consumers on the one hand, and it saves the entrepreneur money on the other. If pig farmers cannot go to a processor, the costs continue for them.
Consumers may have to wait days to weeks before going to a slaughterhouse. To help maintain pig welfare, the University of Minnesota Extension Service has released a guide to pig care tips.
Closure and reopening of slaughterhouses
In Canada, meat giant Cargill will close its second meat factory tomorrow (Wednesday, May 13) due to corona infections among its staff. It concerns the factory in Chambly in Quebec, where 64 employees have tested positive for the virus. Last Monday, Cargill reopened another factory in Alberta that was also temporarily closed due to corona infections.
A large meat factory was also reopened in the United States last Thursday. It is the largest meat factory of Tyson Foods located in Iowa. The factory was closed for two weeks because it was struggling with corona infections, but the reason for closure was at the request of the sheriff due to insufficient security measures. In the meantime, extra security measures have been taken and the sheriff supports the reopening of the factory. If the infection numbers do not decrease, the factory will be closed again.
Chanti Oussoren
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