Beyond the bottom line

摘要

The poultry line speed debate continues. Last year, the US Dept. of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced it would consider waiver requests from processors wanting to increase production from 140 birds per minute up to 175 birds per minute on evisceration lines. Immediately, advocacy groups squawked that faster line speeds would result in more worker injuries and jeopardize food safety. Requests for faster lines were simply about processing more birds and making more money, according to critics. Most processors will admit they're in business to make money, and the chance to make more money with increased line speeds isn't necessarily a bad thing. But for some processors, the need for speed isn't about greed at all.