Source: Nebraska Rural Radio Association
Uncertainty around a potential labor strike is disrupting operations at one of Tyson’s major beef processing plants in Texas. According to livestock market experts, the Tyson facility in Amarillo is dark Thursday and Friday as workers vote on whether to strike.
“There’s picketing around that plant and no production there today,” said Jerry Stowell with Country Futures. “Much focus is on labor here.”
The Amarillo facility has a daily slaughter capacity of 5,500 head. For context, the largest beef processing plant in the US by daily processing capacity is the Tyson Foods plant in Holcomb, Kansas, which can process 6,000 head of cattle per day, according to DTN.
While the results of the vote are not yet clear, the plant’s shutdown suggests management is taking the threat of a strike seriously.
The primary labor demands appear to center on higher wages and more time off.
Meanwhile, production is also expected to be limited at the JBS plant in Grand Island, Nebraska, which has faced heavy rainfall and ongoing lagoon issues. Rain totals of 8 inches were reported on social media.
Unofficial estimated daily slaughter there could drop to between 1,000 and 1,500 head, which is well below its rated capacity of 5,200 head.
The combined disruptions raise fresh concerns about short-term cattle market dynamics and beef supply.
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