President Trump Signs Order to Keep Beef Plants Operating

DENVER (April 28, 2020) - Today, President Trump signed an executive order that orders beef packing plants to remain open and employees in those plants to remain at work through the COVID-19 pandemic. The action taken by President Trump will help keep the beef supply chain intact, ensure beef remains available to consumers and ultimately provide the food that American consumers will need to reopen the nation. 

"While there are currently no widespread shortages of beef, we are seeing supply chain disruptions because of plant closures and reductions in the processing speed at many, if not most, beef processing plants in the United States. We thank President Trump for his recognition of the problem and the action he has taken today to begin correcting it,” said NCBA CEO Colin Woodall. “American consumers rely on a safe, steady supply of food, and President Trump understands the importance of keeping cattle and beef moving to ensure agriculture continues to operate at a time when the nation needs it most.” 

Protecting the flow of cattle through the supply chain was among the first priorities for NCBA at the start of the COVID-19 crisis. The mounting problems facing cattle producers as the supply chain slowed in recent weeks led NCBA to redouble the effort to keep cattle and beef moving and today's action comes because of the association's work on behalf of the entire industry. NCBA's work is critical to reducing further damage from being inflicted upon cattle producers who are unable to get cattle shipped or processed because of unprecedented supply chain interruptions.

 “We understand and appreciate the difficulties facing processing plant workers during this crisis, said Woodall. “Processing plant employees play a role that is critical to the security of this nation and America’s cattle producers offer their sincere gratitude for the work they are doing to keep food shortages from compounding the complex issues we’re facing.”