Good news: Poultry and Cookies

When Sonny Perdue was appointed to Secretary of Agriculture, Georgians--even those who were firmly anti-Trump--were pleased. Perdue has a strong agricultural background, and as much as we champion equal access and market parity, it's good to know a guy. 

Poultry processing is 40% of Georgia's agricultural economy at about $18.5 billion. So when the National Chicken Council got a 60-day USDA review of their request to speed up poultry processing lines from 140 to 175 carcasses per minute, they probably felt that the review was a formality.

On January 31, USDA announced that they would not grant the petition to increase line speeds. This is good news: Poultry plant workers suffer among the highest rates of injuries in the US, many of them due to repetitive motion and poor ergonomics in factories. Speeding up the lines would make the US poultry industry more competitive globally, but at a human cost of nearly a half million people. 

The USDA did not indicate that this is a long-term conclusion and did establish test facilities for the higher speeds. Perdue himself said "They just haven't proven that they can do it safely yet." Given the historical definition of "safely" in poultry processing, it's best to consider this a marginal victory. 

When Sonny Perdue was appointed to Secretary of Agriculture, Georgians--even those who were firmly anti-Trump--were pleased. Perdue has a strong agricultural background, and as much as we champion equal access and market parity, it's good to know a guy. 

Poultry processing is 40% of Georgia's agricultural economy at about $18.5 billion. So when the National Chicken Council got a 60-day USDA review of their request to speed up poultry processing lines from 140 to 175 carcasses per minute, they probably felt that the review was a formality.

On January 31, USDA announced that they would not grant the petition to increase line speeds. This is good news: Poultry plant workers suffer among the highest rates of injuries in the US, many of them due to repetitive motion and poor ergonomics in factories. Speeding up the lines would make the US poultry industry more competitive globally, but at a human cost of nearly a half million people. 

The USDA did not indicate that this is a long-term conclusion and did establish test facilities for the higher speeds. Perdue himself said "They just haven't proven that they can do it safely yet." Given the historical definition of "safely" in poultry processing, it's best to consider this a marginal victory. 

My personal opinion continues to be that if we think that Americans are going to get ahead by comparing our labor costs to countries whose labor practices appall us, we're devaluing everyone's work and worth. We would do better to push for safe working conditions internationally, and to help our local populations receive training to offer higher-valued services than to insist we make chicken as cheap as they do in China. 

If you want to learn more about the labor issues in poultry processing please check out this report from Oxfam, which is the source of the above image.

More information about the proposed rule change, the USDA decision and why it's not time to celebrate USDA's commitment to worker safety. 

Cookies!

In unmitigated good news, some of ourAtlanta's most talented chefs and bakers are making your Valentine's Day plans a lot easier with Cookie Grab 2018. Cookies are perfect in and of themselves and the Cookie Grab has these added benefits:

• One of each cookie will develop couples' negotiation skills and alert you to dealbreakers.
• 18 different cookies will provide infinite--okay, 18 types of--variety for those who choose not to share.
• Popularity and a reputation for exquisite taste with up to 17 of your colleagues.
• That little extra push from the friendzone to the bestfriendzone.
• A sweet, sweet donation to Planned Parenthood SE. Affordable reproductive healthcare, information, and contraception? My, aren't you a catch?

Order you cookies today, folks. There's one box fewer as of 7 A.M.