• Facebook
  • Google Plus
  • Instagram
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter

Menu

Skip to content
  • About
  • Staff
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • FAQ
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
Header image

MyNewsLA.comLogo

Breaking news for greater Los Angeles and Orange County

Menu

Skip to content
  • Crime
  • Government
  • Business
  • Education
  • Sports
  • Hollywood
  • Life
  • OC
  • Rain, Hail Hit Southern California in the First Major Winter Storm of 2021
  • Real Estate Mogul's Son Alleges Extortion by His Late Dad's Mistress
  • People Urged to Take Precautions as Cold, Wet Weather Bears down on Southland
  • Man Killed By Police in Indio During Arrest
  • LA County Surpasses 15K Deaths; 5K Since Christmas

Home » Business » This Article

COVID-19 Outbreak at Farmer John’s Facility in Vernon, 8 Other Plants Affected

Posted by Contributing Editor on May 24, 2020 in Business | Leave a response
Share this article:
Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Officials at the Virginia-based company that owns the Farmer John slaughterhouse in Vernon said Sunday that they have implemented stringent new health protocols, as 116 workers at the plant have tested positive for COVID-19, as well as workers at eight other industrial facilities.

At the Farmer John plant, 153 of 1,837 employees tested positive fore COVID-19 between March and May, the Department of Public Health said.

The other eight facilities with outbreaks are CLW Foods, which handles meat; Vie De France Yamazaki, baked goods; California Farms Meat, Takaokaya USA, green tea; F. Gavina & Sons, coffee; Golden West Trading, meat, Overhill Farms, frozen foods; and Rose & Shore, deli meat and prepared foods, the DPH reported.

Between five and 24 employees at each of the eight facilities tested positive for the virus.

The DPH worried that the workers in these plants could spread the virus throughout their communities.

Smithfield, which owns Farmer John, revealed its new procedures at its Vernon facility.

“Our Smithfield family members are crucial to our nation’s response to COVID-19. We thank them for keeping food on America’s tables, and have implemented aggressive measures to protect their health and safety during this pandemic,” Smithfield Foods said in a statement.

The website LAist reported Thursday that as many as 140 employees at the plant have tested positive for the disease caused by the coronavirus over the past few months, after a cluster of six cases were discovered in the plant’s ham de-boning department in mid-April. The story cited Freddie Agyin, director of Vernon’s Health and Environmental Control Department.

Among the measures the company says it has put in place:

Like this story? Don’t miss any breaking news from MyNewsLA.com. Sign up here for your free newsletter.

 

— Adopted a series of stringent and detailed processes, protocols and protective measures that follow and in some cases, exceed CDC and OSHA guidance for meat and poultry processing workers and employers;

— Boosted personal protective equipment (PPE) to include masks and face shields;

— Installed plexiglass and other physical barriers on the production floor and in break rooms;

— Implemented mass thermal scanning systems to identify employees with elevated temperatures prior to entering facilities;

— Made free voluntary COVID-19 testing available to employees;

— Increased social distancing wherever possible;

— Added abundant hand-sanitizing stations;

— Enhanced cleaning and disinfection;

— Explicitly instructing employees not to report to work if they are sick or exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms;

— Requiring that sick employees stay home and isolate according to CDC and OSHA guidelines;

— Paying employees, including any and all bonuses, when they are quarantined;

— Offering paid leave for all employees at high risk for serious complications from COVID-19;

— Expanded employee health benefits and removed all barriers in its health plan to access medical care, including eliminating co-pays for COVID-19-related testing and treatment;

— Educating all employees about how COVID-19 spreads and how to protect themselves and others;

— Posted employee communications in multiple languages;

— Deferred all nonessential business travel;

— Restricted all nonessential visitors.

Hundreds of pigs are trucked daily into the facility at 3049 E. Vernon Ave., where they are killed and turned into Dodger Dogs, as well as the ham, bacon, sausage and hot dogs sold under the Farmer John label.

Attempts to reach Vernon city officials were unsuccessful.

COVID-19 Outbreak at Farmer John’s Facility in Vernon, 8 Other Plants Affected was last modified: May 24th, 2020 by Contributing Editor

>> Want to read more stories like this? Get our Free Daily Newsletters Here!

Follow us:
Facebooktwitterrss
Posted in Business | Tagged Affected, COVID-19, facility, Farmer, Johns, Other, outbreak, plants, Vernon

Advertisement

Get The Latest News by Email!

Sign up here for our free newsletters. We’ll send you the latest headlines every morning and every weekday afternoon.

 
FORECAST FOR LOS ANGELES
46°
Rain
Feels like: 46°F
Wind: 2mph N
Humidity: 84%
Pressure: 29.87"Hg
UV index: 0
SunMonTue
59/45°F
57/39°F
57/45°F
Weather forecast Los Angeles, California ▸

Most Popular Today

  • Rape, Oral Copulation Of Unconscious Woman Who Then Died In Pomona: Homeless Suspect Charged 2,600 views
  • Man Killed By Vehicle on Harbor Freeway in Downtown Los Angeles 2,400 views
  • One Killed in Rollover Crash on Highway 74 in Homeland 2,400 views
  • Orange County’s Second Vaccine Mega Site Set To Open Saturday 2,000 views
  • Stretch of Jamboree Road in Irvine Closed Saturday 1,800 views

©2021 CalNews Inc.

Menu

  • About
  • Staff
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • FAQ
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service