CHICAGO (Reuters) – Tyson Foods Inc said on Thursday it plans to spend more than $1.3 billion on new automation capabilities over the next three years, as the U.S. meatpacking industry struggles with a labor shortage.
U.S. meat processors have been unable to find enough workers for the past two years due to the tight labor market and health concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic. The lack of workers has constrained production during a time of strong consumer demand.
Tyson expects to boost output and reduce labor costs by increasing automation, with cumulative savings of more than $450 million projected by fiscal year 2024, Chief Executive Donnie King said on a webcast for investors.
The company will increasingly use machines, instead of people, to debone chicken as part of the push toward automation, said David Bray, group president of Tyson’s poultry division.
About 59,000 meatpacking workers were infected with the COVID-19 through January at plants run by Tyson and competitors JBS USA [JBS.UL[, Cargill Inc, National Beef Packing Company and WH Group’s Smithfield Foods, according to a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee report.
(Reporting by Tom Polansek; Editing by Mark Porter)
