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Investigate Midwest (https://investigatemidwest.org/tag/rochelle-foods/)

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Rochelle Foods

Coronavirus

Ten months into pandemic, Rochelle Foods and Illinois health department still at odds over COVID-19

By Madison McVan, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, and Derek Kravitz, Brown Institute for Media Innovation | February 9, 2021

An infected worker allegedly told the plant's manager he was feeling better after his positive test. He told the county health department the opposite.

coronavirus

The Trump Administration told an Illinois health department to leave Rochelle Foods alone. Then a second COVID-19 outbreak struck the plant.

By Derek Kravitz, Brown Institute for Media Innovation; Georgia Gee, Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism, Columbia Journalism School; Madison McVan, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting; and Ignacio Calderon, USA TODAY Network Agriculture Data Fellow | January 18, 2021

A May 1 conference call with federal, state and local health officials sent one message: Despite a COVID-19 outbreak amongst it workers, Rochelle Foods was to remain open. This fall, a second outbreak at the plant wasn’t publicly reported.

Database: Tracking Covid-19’s impact on meatpacking workers and industry

USDA photo by Preston Keres

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) meat inspectors and graders perform their mission.

‘They think workers are like dogs.’ How pork plant execs sacrificed safety for profits.

‘They think workers are like dogs.’ How pork plant execs sacrificed safety for profits.

From City Hall to the White House, our investigation found, officials let Triumph Foods stay open as hundreds of workers got coronavirus. Four died.

Opinion

  • Opinion: Big Meat must provide transparency for COVID response

    Well, times are changing, and Big-Meat won't be able to be so caviler to the shiny new House Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis chaired by U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn. The South Carolina Democrat wasted no time after his appointment to demand Big-Meat to account for its COVID response.

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The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting is a nonprofit, online newsroom offering investigative and enterprise coverage of agribusiness,big ag and related issues through data analysis, visualizations, in-depth reports and interactive web tools. Learn More »

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