Congressional lawmakers are urgently requesting USDA and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to appeal a recent federal district court ruling that, left unchallenged, will cause tremendous financial harm to U.S. pig farmers starting June 29.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Reps. Jim Hagedorn (R-Minn.) and Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) spearheaded letters to the administration asking for their support, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) shared in a release.
“While the economic impact to these packers will be significant, it is the nation’s small- and medium-sized hog farmers who will suffer the greatest harm from upstream impacts. It is imperative that USDA act quickly to move for a stay of the judge’s order and an appeal to prevent this reduction in packing capacity, which is set to take place at the end of June,” the lawmakers wrote.
NPPC asks USDA and the DOJ to appeal the court ruling that, unless halted, will result in a 2.5% loss in pork packing plant capacity nationwide, and more than $80 million in reduced income for small U.S. hog farmers, according to an analysis by Iowa State University Economist Dermot Hayes.
To avoid these consequences, lawmakers urged USDA Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to defend the NSIS program by appealing and requesting an extended stay, beyond the current 90-day deadline and pursue an expedited rulemaking while the stay is in place.
“Failure to do so will leave our nation’s hog producers to bear the brunt of the consequences due to no fault of their own,” the lawmakers wrote.
The federal court’s decision struck down a provision of USDA’s New Swine Inspection System (NSIS) allowing for faster harvest facility line speeds. NSIS, initiated during the Clinton administration and evaluated at five pilot plants over 20 years, was approved for industry-wide adoption in 2019, NPPC said in a release. NSIS modernized an inspection system that had remained unchanged for more than 50 years.
At a time when the U.S. is seeking to increase much-needed pork harvest capacity, the court order will reduce plant capacity at six plants running at NSIS line speeds by as much as 25%, NPPC said. The five original plants, which have been running at NSIS line speeds over the life of the program, have been safely operating for more than 20 years.
“We thank the lawmakers, led by Sen. Chuck Grassley and Reps. Jim Hagedorn and Dusty Johnson, for their support in recognizing the damaging ramifications this court ruling will have on hog farmers,” NPPC President Jen Sorenson, communications director for Iowa Select Farms in West Des Moines, Iowa, said in a release. “We urge other lawmakers to join the growing calls for USDA and the DOJ to quickly intervene, preventing this carnage to hog farmers.”
Read more here:
Who Will Pay the Cost of Reduced Line Speeds in Pork Plants?
Misguided Ruling Could Upend the Lives of Many Hog Farmers, Sorenson Says
USDA Will Not Appeal Line Speed Ruling in Pork Processing Plants
Judge Denies Seaboard’s Motion to Delay Line Speed Limits
U.S. Pork Processor Seeks to Delay Court Decision Limiting Slaughter Speeds
Federal Court Removes Swine Slaughter Line Speed Provision
Union Representing Pork Processing Plant Workers Sues USDA
Industry Groups File Brief in Support of New Swine Inspection System
