U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins’ swift action to extend waivers allowing pork processors to operate at higher line speeds not only opened the door to greater production efficiency but also more certainty for pork producers after years of waiting and mixed signals.
“I was pleased to hear the announcement yesterday from Sec. Rollins to maintain increased line speeds at several packing plants permanently,” says Chad Leman, an Illinois pork producer. “We are shipping hogs frequently from our farms to the JBS plant at Beardstown, Ill., and the extra pigs that are able to be processed each day add up quickly over the course of weeks and months. It is nice to have the assurance going forward that we are no longer just extending the trials but rather moving on with the certainty that we can maintain food and worker safety while efficiently processing more pigs.”
That efficiency is key to Craig Andersen, a South Dakota pork producer.
“I think I’m safe in saying that all pork producers are glad to see the USDA move this forward to finalize it. Farmers, especially pig farmers, are all about bettering efficiencies,” Andersen says. “When we can do that without sacrificing quality and safety, it is imperative that we do it. I think it’s about $10/head that can be gained with these added efficiencies.”
For Pat Hord, an Ohio pork producer, two of the plants that his farm works directly with are part of the New Swine Inspection System and were part of the pilot process.
“This trial period has created a lot of uncertainty for us in the past few years,” Hord says. “From a producer standpoint, it really doesn’t matter if you are supplying a plant that’s part of NSIS or not. What affects us as producers is change. We have agreements we have to fulfill to the plants and if I needed to find a different processing plant for 10% to 20% of my pigs because of a change (i.e. reduction) in line speeds, that would be very difficult. And I wouldn’t be the only producer in that situation.”
How Did We Get Here?
In September of 2019, FSIS issued its final New Swine Inspection System (NSIS) rule, establishing a voluntary modernized inspection system. NSIS allows USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) inspectors to focus attention on verifying food safety and animal welfare requirements, while providing flexibility for food safety innovation. The NSIS rule is based on a pilot program FSIS initiated more than 25 years ago, giving the agency a wealth of data and a deep knowledge base from which to establish NSIS.
“Under NSIS, plant employees in swine slaughter establishments conduct manual sorting activities to remove defects in carcasses and parts prior to FSIS inspection, making inspection more efficient,” The Meat Institute said in a release. “Critically, FSIS inspects 100% of live animals prior to slaughter and all carcasses after slaughter in all regulated facilities.”
Because of a court decision regarding the Administrative Procedures Act, allowances for faster line speeds under NSIS were vacated and participating establishments were required to operate at slower speeds as of June 30, 2021. In November 2021, FSIS invited NSIS establishments to participate in a time-limited trial to operate at increased line speeds to gather data for rulemaking. FSIS contracted with the University of California, San Francisco, to conduct a study released on January 10, 2025.
The months-long study found no statistically significant associations between various line speeds and increased worker safety risk. The results from the research at six plants concluded that “line speeds were not determined to be the leading factor in worker musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) risk at these plants.”
Worker Safety Matters
Plants that participated in the NSIS program had to build a plan specifically for their plant, Hord says, while simultaneously addressing issues from a worker safety standpoint.
“Worker safety is important to all of us,” Hord says. “As a farm and company, we want to know there is integrity in the process. We certainly do not want somebody to be able to process more pigs at a worker safety cost. There is nothing worth the safety of the workers in the plant.”
He appreciates how this study validates and confirms this positive move forward.
Chet Mogler, an Iowa pork producer, values how USDA has considered all aspects from worker safety and food safety to processor efficiency and farm market access.
“It’s a win for the American producers as we compete on the global stage and work hard to produce great tasting, affordable pork to both domestic and international customers,” Mogler says.
Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts says she is looking forward to working with Sec. Rolins and livestock and poultry suppliers to provide certainty to the supply chain and allow additional companies the opportunity to utilize this system.
“Sec. Rollins has proven she is serious about eliminating bureaucratic hurdles at USDA to ensure efficient production of safe meat and poultry products,” Potts says. “We appreciate her wasting no time to support innovation in our industry.”
Your Next Read: USDA Secretary Announces Plan to Make Pork Plant Line Speeds Program Permanent
