John Tyson, the chairman of Tyson Foods, warned Sunday that the "food supply chain is breaking" amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In a full-page ad published in The New York Times, Tyson discussed the challenges that are currently facing the business after it has been forced to close some of its food processing plants.
"This means one thing – the food supply chain is vulnerable," he said. "As pork, beef and chicken plants are being forced to close, even for short periods of time, millions of pounds of meat will disappear from the supply chain. As a result, there will be limited supply of our products available in grocery stores until we are able to reopen our facilities that are currently closed."
Tyson said they are also faced with a major food waste issue: "Farmers across the nation simply will not have anywhere to sell their livestock to be processed, when they could have fed the nation. Millions of animals – chickens, pigs and cattle – will be depopulated because of the closure of our processing facilities. The food supply chain is breaking."
Tyson Foods didn’t mince words in a full page @nytimes ad Sunday, warning, “the food supply chain is breaking.”
— Mosheh Oinounou (@Mosheh) April 27, 2020
“As pork, beef and chicken plants are being forced to close...millions of pounds of meat will disappear from the supply chain,” John Tyson wrote. pic.twitter.com/0jJxrMOngw
He discussed the delicate balance between feeding the nation and maintaining a healthy work environment for the company's employees and all the safety measures that have been put in place, as well as benefits they are now offering workers.
"It hasn't been easy, and it's not over. But I have faith that together, we'll get through this," he said. "We will continue to bring new ideas to the table, solve new problems, and create new opportunities. We must come together to keep our nation fed, our country strong, and our employees healthy."