Farms to destroy 2M chickens due to plant staffing shortages

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Farms to destroy 2M chickens due to plant staffing shortages

The Associated Press

April 24, 2020, 9:33 AM

BALTIMORE (AP) — Coronavirus-related staffing shortages at chicken processing plants will lead farms in Maryland and Delaware to destroy nearly 2 million chickens.

The Baltimore Sun reported Friday that the plants are unable to keep pace with the number of birds that are ready for harvest. They had been placed into poultry houses as chicks several weeks ago. The chickens will not be processed for meat.

The trade group the Delmarva Poultry Industry said that every poultry plant on the Delmarva Peninsula has struggled with a reduced worker attendance. The reasons include workers being sick with the virus and people following guidance to stay home if sick.

Copyright © 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

[jimfields33]

1. What a shame. That could feed so many hungry in our country.

It’s so damn tough right now. Any light at all at the end of the tunnel?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. I need to revise my post.

I had posted a cartoon from this morning's batch depicting Mitch McConnell as Marie Antoinette. I quickly though to myself that there isn't anything funny about hunger.

========

Yeah, I can't make fun of this. People are going hungry, but this is happening.

I don't know what the answer is. These are chickens. They are not a package commodity ready to sell for taking home and cooking. First, you've got to get people out to the farms to get the chickens. Then they have to be moved to a central location for distribution. Then, you have all those feathers to contend with.

There are a lot of intermediate steps involved.

[SWBTATTReg]

2. So, farmers, how do you like trump's immigration (legal and illegal) plans now? Kind of ...

brought this all on yourselves.

[Newest Reality]

4. You name it...

Eggs, milk, beer, chickens, etc...

Lots of food here!<-----------------------NO! Destroy!-------------------------->People, (men, women, children) who are hungry and starving.

Ya'll go hungry. We will dump it. Now, that's a GREAT America, for sure.

Something is VERY wrong with a system where destroying food is the answer to distribution problems rather than getting it to people who need it, food banks, etc. Give it away if you can't sell it.

Now, if we had a compassionate and functional federal government, something could be arranged, I imagine and even quickly. But no!

[Ferrets are Cool]

5. JFC

This is sickening

[we can do it]

6. Go ahead and shoot me now.

But fuck these asshole farmers. Dumping milk, plowing under beans, destroying chickens. People are starving damn it😡. Fuck every last one of the greedy assholes doing this.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

7. Would you like to buy the chickens?

The farmers are already in the hole, having raised the chickens from eggs or pullets, I don't know which. I'm sure they'll sell them to anyone who can bail them out.

One question though -- what are you going to do with them once you have them?

[we can do it]

8. I'm not even going to dignify that with a response.

[customerserviceguy]

10. There's an old saying

"Don't cuss the farmer with your mouth full."

We may not have the availability of food to stuff our mouths full soon.

[jberryhill]

11. What do you want the farmers to do?

They don’t have anywhere to take their produce and they don’t have the means to take it anywhere.

What, specifically, would you suggest doing with a couple of thousand chickens when the entire point of raising them is that Perdue comes by with a truck every couple of months and takes them away.

Do you know anything about how raising chickens works?

[we can do it]

9. Not another fucking penny to ever bail out these drump loving assholes again.