In his review of livestock production in the U.S. Will Sawyer of CoBank confirmed an improvement in packing plant utilization.  Beef capacity has increased from a low in early April of 55 percent to a current 85 percent.  Pork capacity has now attained 80 percent although there is a profound backlog of hogs awaiting slaughter, necessitating euthanasia.  The severity of the situation was confirmed last week by Dr. Beth Thompson, State Veterinarian of Minnesota who stated that as of April 30th workers at an idled JBS plant in Worthington, MN were euthanizing 3,000 hogs per day with the intention of increasing to 13,000 per day.

The effect of COVID on the workforce in packing plants is evidenced by 5,000 diagnosed cases of COVID-19 among 50,000 meat plant workers with 45 confirmed fatalities.

According to Sawyer, despite promotional articles in news media, vegetable-based protein does not come close to compensating for the loss in red meat and poultry at the supermarket level. Although manufacturers of meat substitutes have expanded production, their capacity is limited, and the large claimed percentage increases are based on a small output.

Will Sawyer, CoBank Analyst