skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Faster Poultry Factory Lines' Risk for Consumers Cited

play audio
Play

Monday, December 11, 2017   

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Consumer safety could be at risk from the poultry industry's proposal to allow faster line speeds in factories, workers' rights advocates say.

The National Chicken Council, which represents the industry, has petitioned the U.S. Department of Agriculture to grant increased line speeds.

The current limit is 140 birds per minute, but speeds could go up to the industry-preferred 175 birds per minute, or about three per second.

Debbie Berkowitz, a senior fellow with the National Employment Law Project, says if the agency approves, poultry plants across the country could increase their line speeds, but she says that would come at a cost for consumers.

"The United States Department of Agriculture sets the line speed in poultry industry to protect consumers, because you want to make sure that the inspectors have time to look at the birds, to do the testing that they need to do to make sure that the consumers are protected," she states.

The USDA is accepting public comment on this proposal through Wednesday.

The National Chicken Council says plants need high line speeds to keep up with international competitors. Illinois produced 1.5 billion eggs, and had about 5.3 million chickens in 2016.

Berkowitz says the higher pace also would jeopardize the safety of workers in an already dangerous industry. She points out that poultry workers perform their duties at breakneck speeds as it is.

"They have among the highest numbers of reported severe injuries such as amputations,” she states. “They have illness rates that are five times the average for all industries (and) injury rates that are 1.5 times as high as all industries."

The poultry industry contends that workers aren't at greater risk from increased line speeds.

Berkowitz says another hazard for workers is the growing use of chemicals on birds to kill pathogens, which can make workers sick.

Berkowitz questions whether this process even is legal. She says the USDA studied the current limit for line speeds for three years during the Obama administration and found it should be kept where it is.

"It would be like you petitioning as a consumer, 'I'd like to be exempt from the speed limit on this highway on my way home because I know in other states they have a higher miles per hour that they allow,'” she points out. “I mean, this is just a ridiculous request."






get more stories like this via email

more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Many factors affect a customer's bill amount, including energy usage, weather, and the number of days in a billing period, according to Arizona Public Service. (Jason Yoder/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021