USDA announces another extension of pork-processing line speed trial

Washington — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has again extended a trial of faster line speeds at select pork-processing facilities, saying it’s continuing to study the effect on worker safety.

The extension will last through Jan. 15, USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced in a Feb. 27 constituent update.

Facilities participating in the agency’s optional New Swine Inspection System are permitted to operate at speeds faster than the current maximum line speed of 1,106 hogs an hour.

In November, the agency granted an extension of the line-speed trial for up to 90 days beyond the previous stop date of Nov. 30. USDA determined that the data the participating facilities submitted to a team of worker safety experts “was not sufficient to evaluate the impact of increased line speeds on worker safety.” 

After a series of recent meetings between USDA, participating processing facilities and other stakeholders, the agency finalized a study plan.

“The study will include onsite visits, interviews with establishment workers, and measurements and observations of plant operations at 1,106 [hogs per hour] and respective establishment’s higher line speed,” the agency says. “The study team will deliver a report to FSIS, which the agency will use to guide next steps regarding line speeds in swine establishments, which could include a decision to pursue rulemaking.”

Despite previously acknowledging it had accepted a March 2021 ruling of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota that prohibits the removal of maximum pork-processing line speeds, USDA that same year initiated a “time-limited” trial allowing for NSIS facilities to apply to operate faster than current maximum line speeds.

A December ruling of the Western District of New York upheld the NSIS amid a legal challenge from a coalition of animal rights and environmental advocacy groups. The court said USDA’s implementation of the system was “not arbitrary and capricious,” as the groups charged, and the rationale behind pivoting to the system is sufficient.

The agency previously extended the trial in March 2023.