This week’s take on food production focuses on aid during the coronavirus pandemic: both giving and receiving. In recent weeks, the conversation about who’s helping whom has proven a hot topic, from the $3 trillion federal bailout to high-end chefs converting their restaurants to food banks.

With unemployment rampant, food groups from across the spectrum are advocating for themselves and outlining their needs. In addition, the topic of frontline workers and employee relations continues to top the list of discussions. We look at a few different perspectives along the supply chain below.

“The people we serve and the charitable food system in the United States are facing a ‘perfect storm,’ with surges in demand, declines in food donations and volunteers, and disruptions to normal operating procedures, as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.”

Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO, Feeding America

Sometimes You Lend a Hand …

As millions of Americans file for unemployment — and millions more face uncertain futures — many have stepped up to help. The government, food companies and chefs have all provided aid in what ways they can.

• Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) outlined how federal stimulus packages help farmers, food producers and families facing hunger.
• PepsiCo pledged to spend $45 million in COVID-19 aid globally.
• Northeastern grocery chain Stop & Shop committed to send 5,000 meals daily to hospitals in New York City and Boston.
• After converting the high-end restaurant to a soup kitchen of sorts, Eleven Madison Park chef Daniel Humm told Food & Wine, “If every restaurant in NYC would get $500 a day to produce 100 meals, we would end hunger.”
• The Washington Post detailed Guy Fieri’s fundraising efforts for corporate donations to the National Restaurant Association Education Fund’s employee relief fund. Judging by the “supporters” list, there’s some love for workers at diners, drive-ins and dives.

… Sometimes You Need a Hand

Relief cannot come soon enough for key segments of the food industry. Restaurants are scrutinizing the $350 billion in available loans for small businesses, food banks are struggling to serve communities as demand spikes, and agriculture needs financial aid to keep the domestic food supply going.

• In The Washington Post, Naomi Pomeroy, founder of the newly formed Independent Restaurant Coalition described the Paycheck Protection Program administered by the Small Business Administration: “It’s just kind of a nightmare the way it’s set up.”
• Restaurant relief funds for workers cannot keep up with demand. Teofilo Reyes, Director of Programs and Research for nonprofit Restaurant Opportunities Center United, lamented, “We wish we could support everybody but the need is pretty overwhelming.”
• Facing soaring demand and plummeting supply, Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot warned that the charity faces a $1.4 billion shortfall.
• Agriculture groups, including the National Farmers Union, are elevating calls to the USDA for quick and efficient disbursement of relief funds — which include $9.5 billion for livestock, dairy and specialty crop producers and $14 billion to replenish Commodity Credit Corporation funds.
• A coalition of 31 agriculture groups appealed to the Small Business Association, asking farms and related businesses to qualify for loans under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program: “Many agricultural producers need access to this critical source of financing to help preserve their businesses and avoid further disruptions to our economy and food systems.”
• Activist group Union of Concerned Scientists emphasized that farms are highly intertwined with the health of local businesses.

Hard Times on the Front Line

Frontline workers on farms, food processing and channels continue to draw attention in the wake of the coronavirus. Most discussions showcase stories about their employment status, health concerns and role as essential services during the pandemic.

“We’re always worried about contamination. And now, it’s not only product contamination but employee contamination.”​

Howard Dorman, Mazars USA (Food Dive)

The unfolding coronavirus pandemic continues to dominate just about every aspect of conversations in food production. In previous weeks, we outlined industry content segment by segment, but in this edition we focus on three distinct themes:

1. The dramatic effect on workers throughout the supply chain
2. The major changes in food consumption at the consumer level
3. The important events that have been canceled, postponed or moved to the back burner

The first quarter of 2020 closed this week, and our quantitative analysis of industry discussions verified coronavirus’s enormous impact across the entire food production business. Notably, worker issues are surfacing as the issue that the crisis has impacted most aggressively.

Later this month, we’ll also release our quarterly Top Ten Topics, which will help put this unprecedented period into further perspective.

“It’s definitely eye-opening. Because people are now saying, ‘Oh, my God, these people deserve hazard pay.’ But these are the same people who say we don’t deserve $15 an hour.”

Courtney Meadows, cashier, Kroger (NPR)

1. Concern for Front-line Workers

Some leaders used their position to offer support and stand in solidarity with their front-line workers. Meanwhile, companies that failed to act drew the ire of employees who complained that not enough had been done to ensure their health, safety and well-being.

Undocumented Workers:

• Salon voiced concern for undocumented restaurant workers amid record unemployment rates. The article cites Pew research statistics that estimate, “In 2014, about 1.1 million, or 10% of restaurant workers were undocumented.”
• The New York Times interviewed undocumented farm workers who — while deemed essential — still face possible deportation and are not eligible for any of the $2 trillion stimulus package.
• The Washington Post reported that more than 10 million people applied for unemployment as of April 2.

Hospitality Workers

• Grub Street called for kindness and empathy toward the front-line workers keeping America fed.
• David Gibbs, CEO of Taco Bell and KFC parent company Yum! Brands, donated his salary to fund bonuses for managers and an employee relief fund.
• Bloomberg spoke with laid-off and furloughed hospitality employees who “are hesitant to apply for the new jobs for a number of reasons, including safety concerns.”
• NPR made the case for hazard pay and paid sick leave for essential workers. “Work that is often low-paid, and comes with few protections, is now suddenly much more dangerous.”

Food Production Workers

• Vox spoke with advocacy groups who represent Amazon, Instacart and Whole Foods workers striking for safer conditions: “The companies they work for are not providing basic support, like giving them the time and supplies to wash their hands between shifts.”
• ProPublica summarized different meat processors’ employee safety responses and asked, “What happens if the workers cutting up the nation’s meat get sick?”
• Agri-Pulse reported that five federal employees, including one FSIS inspector, have sued the federal government for hazard pay for working during the coronavirus crisis, seeking class-action status for more than 100,000 employees.
• Food Navigator provided food processors with some best practices to ensure their workforce stays safe and healthy.

Retail Workers

• The United Food and Commercial Workers Union announced that talks with Kroger resulted in a $2 per hour wage increase and several other benefits and protections for 460,000 workers nationwide.
• Walmart announced it would begin taking employees’ temperatures as a safety precaution. Associates “with a temperature of 100.0 degrees will be paid for reporting to work and asked to return home and seek medical treatment.”
• Reuters noted many major grocery chains have begun installing plexiglass partitions at checkout counters to protect cashiers.
• Trader Joe’s employees circulated an online petition demanding “safe work conditions and hazard pay.”

2. Changes in Food Consumption

Pandemic shopping and cooking has consumers reconsidering what is essential.

• Agri-Pulse postponed its Food and Ag Policy Summit West until September 9.
• The Institute of the Masters of Wine canceled this year’s introductory exams.
• The Institute of Food Technologists transitioned its annual conference to a fully virtual experience.
• The National Pork Producers Council canceled World Pork Expo for the second year in a row. The group dropped last year’s event as a precaution for African swine fever.
• Senators pushed for the delay of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, worrying the pandemic leaves “little, if any, time and resources to prepare for a smooth transition.”
• Following up on China’s January commitment to purchase agricultural goods from the U.S., Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue announced: “China is moving in the right direction to implement the Phase One agreement.”
• As a reminder, in mid-March the FDA postponed routine domestic facility inspections.
• Nutrition Facts labeling compliance is also canceled for restaurants that wish to sell unused inventory as grocery products to buoy sales.

“We need to continue to produce in this crisis. That’s the first step of normalcy for a lot of people is you show up to the grocery store and if there is food on the shelf, and so we have a big part in returning a calmness to the market.”

Steve Presley, CEO, Nestlé USA (Food Dive)

Obviously, COVID-19 dominated every facet of the news this week. Influential voices in food certainly dug in on the subject, while a few other topics squeaked past:

• Panic pandemic shopping
• Bioengineered education
• Salad safety

“Go ahead and put your money where your heart is. But don’t feel like it’s up to you and your food purchases to solve every problem in the world.”

Dan Charles, NPR

COVID-19 Clears Shelves

Food figures heavily in how people are preparing for the possibility of a two-week quarantine. It should be noted that while the Department of Homeland Security recommended stocking up on two weeks worth of food, water and regular prescription drugs in a pandemic, panic buying is always ill advised. That doesn’t mean it’s not prevalent.

• Eater interviewed Cornell Tech professor Karan Girotra, who reminded readers “Panic buying becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy … Irrational behavior, rumors, misinformation can create short-term logistical issues.”
• The Wall Street Journal spoke with retailers, logistics specialists and consumers to illustrate the different ways people are preparing for shortages and the rise in demand for food and cleaning supplies.
• Increasingly, people are turning to delivery services to get supplies without leaving their homes, The Counter quoted a representative from Instacart: “Sales have grown tenfold over the last 72 hours.”
• Supermarket News reported some delivery services have launched “contactless” delivery options “to protect the health and safety of the delivery ecosystem.”
• Bloomberg surveyed what people were stocking up on for their “pandemic pantries.” Rather surprisingly, oat milk stuck out as a crowd favorite.
• Food publications and blogs stressed eating at home. Bon Appetit published “71 Creative Rice Recipes Using Our Favorite Pantry Staple” while Quartz posted home-cooking ideas under the “Quarantine Cookbook” umbrella.

BE-tter Understanding

On March 4, the EPA, USDA and FDA launched Feed Your Mind, a multi-agency effort to “help consumers better understand genetically engineered foods.” This initiative comes as the agencies work to fulfill requirements of the requirements of the national mandatory bioengineered (BE) food labeling standard by 2022.”

• Feedstuffs provided a summary of the information that was published, including this YouTube video from the FDA.
• A Feed Your Mind fact sheet noted GMO is the “common term consumers and popular media use,” while bioengineered is “the term that Congress used to describe certain types of GMOs.”
• On March 12, the Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing on the future of biotechnology and regulatory issues. Committee Chairman Pat Roberts told Agri-Pulse the hearing would focus on “where we are from a producer’s standpoint.”
• Food Dive suggested the initiative was too late: “Since the labeling law could very well change the public terminology on the issue, there may be a future where the acronym ‘GMO’ may only consistently appear on the Non GMO Project Verified seal.”

Yellow Light for Leafy Greens

On March 5, the FDA released the “2020 Leafy Greens STEC Action Plan” to identify and prevent dangerous strains of E. coli after several recent outbreaks of foodborne illness stemming from leafy greens, (food safety attorney Bill Marler counted five E. coli outbreaks in the past three years). The plan falls under the FDA’s “New Era of Smarter Food Safety.” Commissioner Stephen Hahn said the plan was “designed to help foster a more urgent, collaborative and action-oriented approach.”

• Food Safety News reporter Coral Beach provided a detailed backgrounder while Georgia State professor Timothy Lytton published an opinion in the same publication suggesting this policy is “more of the same.”
• Meatingplace highlighted FDA efforts to monitor cattle operations and “the impact of adjacent and nearby land use on leafy greens growing areas.”
• Western Growers Association committed to “working with FDA and the leafy greens sector to achieve common goals.”

This was a sick week for food industry events. Luckily, the only bug The Intel Distillery members caught was the Mormon cricket. We let it go outside …

• We traveled for a little food show and tell
• But COVID-19 crashed the party

We are also introducing a monthly special, Distilled Perspective, where we answer reader questions on the industry. This month, it’s the state of American dairies.

“People still have this image of red barns, of cows in the field. … We’ve all been there — it’s an image, and it feels like a warm hug, somehow, and that’s what you want to think of when you think of a dairy farm. But that’s not the reality anymore.”

Mark Stephenson, Director, University of Wisconsin Center for Dairy Profitability (Bloomberg)

Show Business

Members of The Intel Distillery planned to attend industry events this week. We made the North American Meat Institute’s annual meat conference in Nashville and a Politico Live event in Chicago, but New Hope Network’s Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, California, was postponed.

• Team Leader Betsy Rado traveled to the meat conference where she observed a presentation on grocery retail trends from McMillan Doolittle’s Neil Stern, who reassured audience members: “Physical retail isn’t dying. Bad retail is.”
• Content specialists Kyle Church and Courtney Sprewer attended Politico’s “America’s Environmental Future: On the Menu — The Food System of the Future.” The three panelists discussed bringing together citizens, farmers, cooks and lawmakers to collaborate on a food system that serves everyone. Chef Rick Bayless commented: “It was actually the farmers that taught me about sustainability.”
• New Hope Network announced on March 2 that Expo West is “officially postponed, with the intention to announce, by mid-April, a new date.” Would-be participants expressed collective disappointment in the missed opportunities and New Hope’s communications.
• Before the organizer postponed the show, KIND CEO Daniel Lubetzky offered a scathing critique on LinkedIn, soliciting 3,800 engagements. He called out New Hope for “missing the mark” with regards to show participants’ well-being.

Coronavirus Congestion

The effects of coronavirus are being felt across industries, but food and beverage companies’ dependency on global trade routes has made conducting business during the outbreak particularly difficult.

• The Wall Street Journal described all the ways coronavirus is “upending the carefully calibrated logistics of global shipping.” U.S. distributors of meat, produce and even animal feed have complained of Chinese port congestion, causing significantly increases in the time and cost it takes to ship and store goods.
• Food Safety News spoke with food scientists who agree, “coronavirus poses little danger from a foodborne illness perspective.”
• Vox stressed the importance of washing your hands to prevent the spread of the virus. In Food Safety News, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety Mindy Brashears doubled down on that recommendation: “wash your hands, not your poultry.”
• Chicago Tribune debunked this widely disseminated and decidedly made-up statistic from PR firm 5WPR: “38 percent of beer-drinking Americans would not buy Corona under any circumstances now.” (It should be noted, however, 5WPR once handled PR for competitor Anheuser Busch.)
• In reference to the false statistics, Corona’s parent company, Constellation Brands, stressed “these claims simply do not reflect our business performance and consumer sentiment.”

DISTILLED PERSPECTIVE, Vol. 1: What’s up with dairy?

An Intel Distillery subscriber asked “What’s going on with dairy these days?”
First of all, thank you for asking. And second, quite a bit actually.

Between the poor weather of 2019, increased competition from milk alternatives, labeling, trade issues in North America and Asia, shuttering of small-scale operations and major brand bankruptcies, the dairy sector has commanded an outsized share of the spotlight of late:

If the only constant is change, this week was aggressively constant.

• Dairy Farmers of America to buy bankrupt Dean Foods.
• Farming groups launch new sustainability org.
• Food brands shift policies.

“Livestock and crop production are the heart of American agriculture, providing the food we enjoy every day. Ensuring this production continues sustainably is essential for people and the planet.”

Farmers for a Sustainable Future

MOOving forward

On February 17, the country’s largest dairy cooperative, Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), struck a $425 million deal to acquire Dean Foods, which declared bankruptcy in November 2019.

• DFA President and CEO Rick Smith listed “secure markets for our members’ milk and minimal disruption to the U.S. dairy industry” as reasons for pursuing the deal.
• While the two parties have come to an agreement, the deal is still pending approval from the U.S. Department of Justice. The New York Times highlighted possible conflicts of interest and antitrust violations.
• Feedstuffs noted the agreement is still subject to higher or otherwise better offers. The deadline for other interested parties to be considered a potential bidder is March 31.
• The International Brotherhood of Teamsters updated its union members about developments in the deal.

A Sustainable Birth Announcement

On February 21, 21 industry groups representing a wide array of food producers formed Farmers for a Sustainable Future (FSF). The initiative focuses on “producing the world’s food, feed and fiber supply in a sustainable way.” The next day, Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the “Agriculture Innovation Agenda” — a promise by the USDA to “stimulate innovation” so American ag can simultaneously increase production by 40% and cut farmers’ environmental impact in half by 2050.

• FarmProgress summarized FSF’s guiding principles. The group is prioritizing science-based research, conservation programs, investment in infrastructure, and “solutions that ensure vibrant rural communities and a healthy planet.”
• Brownfield Ag News advanced the idea that the group’s true purpose is “to serve as a primary resource for lawmakers and policymakers as they consider climate policies.”
• The organization launched a Twitter account, but has only introduced itself and retweeted partner content from the cotton, rice, corn and beef industries.
• On the subject of climate policy, Politico‘s coverage of the USDA announcement called out the initiative’s omission of any mention of climate change. Claiming “instead, it will focus on research, innovation and improving USDA’s ability to collect data on farmers’ conservation practices.”
• AgWeb also cited the original reporting from Politico that accused the USDA of suppressing climate change research in its coverage of Thursday’s announcement.

Keeping Up with the Nestlés

The Intel Distillery carefully tracks food industry positions on sourcing, ingredients and practices. Recent policy change has focused on environmental stewardship, farm animal care, packaging and worker issues. These policies — which often cite consumer interest or activist pressure as their genesis — affect food trends down the supply chain. 2020 has already seen a handful of announcements from noteworthy food service companies and manufacturers.

• Taco Bell vowed to use recyclable, compostable or reusable materials for consumer-facing packaging by 2025. (1/9/20)
• Popeyes committed to “a set of standards that will meaningfully improve chicken welfare in the company’s supply chain” no later than 2024. (1/17/20)
• A coalition of major North American berry producers committed to 100% recycle-ready packaging by 2025. (2/4/20)
• Hershey’s will source cage-free eggs across all countries and divisions by 2025. (2/7/20)
• Unilever pledged to stop marketing and advertising foods and beverages to children under the age of 12 by the end of 2020. (2/11/20)
• Perdue reached its goal of providing outdoor access in 25% of its chicken houses by January 2020. (2/18/20)
• Burger King removed artificial preservatives from its Whopper and artificial colors and flavors from all core menu sandwiches in most of Europe and select U.S. markets. (2/19/20)
• Hormel will no longer process hogs given ractopamine (a growth promotant) as of April 2020. (2/18/20)

For most people, this week is all about spreading the love. However, the food and ag world faced:

• A federal budget backlash.
• A fried chicken frenzy.
• A meat aisle melee.

“Americans dining out on Valentine’s Day will find there is a price on love that keeps moving higher.”

Sarah Chaney and Heather Haddon, Wall Street Journal

Budget Backlash

On February 10, President Trump unveiled his 2021 budget proposal. While many influential food and agriculture groups disapproved the proposed budget, Congress has the final say.

• Politico provided a helpful summary of the possible effects on food, agriculture and trade.
• The New York Times claimed that the budget “[would cut] SNAP funding by about $15 billion from last year.”
• National Association of Wheat Growers President Ben Scholz confirmed the group “will continue to impress upon Congress the difficult economic conditions in wheat country and thus why these programs shouldn’t be cut through the budget and appropriations process.”
• National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson said that the proposed budget “has failed to address the very real economic challenges facing rural communities” for the fourth year in a row.
• However, Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue released a statement applauding “President Trump’s pro-growth policies like tax cuts, common-sense deregulation, and new trade deals.”

Fried Chicken Frenzy

The fried chicken wars of 2019 are flying high well into this new year. Americans just love the fried yardbird as it’s leading sales for national chains and gaining popularity on breakfast, lunch and dinner menus.

• KFC unveiled a pair of $59.99 bucket-of-chicken-themed platform Crocs via the company’s YouTube channel. The shoes are even fried chicken-scented.
• Nation’s Restaurant News reported Popeyes, which “used to be a lower profile brand for Restaurant Brands International,” has become an important driver of sales in the fourth quarter, thanks in part to its viral chicken sandwich.
• Wendy’s wanted in too. On February 4, the brand announced a nationwide rollout of a breakfast menu that features a crispy chicken biscuit.
• Los Angeles Times food writer Jenn Harris debuted “The Bucket List,” a series dedicated to fried chicken in Los Angeles. For her first feature, she interviewed chef Sang Yoon about the science behind making delicious fried chicken.

Can’t Judge a Meat by Its Package

In the battle for grocery store shelves and consumers’ plates, decision-makers on both sides of the divide faced off over plant-based meat alternative labeling issues.

• Republican members of Maryland’s state senate proposed a bill that seeks to prevent cell-cultured meats from being labeled as meat if “the product contains animal tissue cultured from animal cells outside the animal from which the tissue is derived or is made from plants or insects.”
• The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association partnered with The Center for Consumer Freedom to survey 1,800 consumers about plant-based meat, finding “widespread consumer confusion regarding the ingredient composition and purported benefits of plant-based fake meat products.” CNBC provided more context.
• Plant-based food manufacturer Miyoko’s Kitchen sued the state of California for violating the company’s first amendment rights by ordering the company to “remove truthful messages and images from its website and its product labels.”

“At the turn of the 21st Century and beyond, foodborne hazards are well known. People understand what you can’t see can kill you. It wasn’t always that way.”

Coral Beach, managing editor, Food Safety News

Keeping Stock of Coronavirus

Coronavirus continues to spread infection and fear throughout food production worldwide. On January 30, The World Health Organization declared the disease a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern.”

• In its January 29 coverage of a speech by Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Reuters reported, “The virus has cast further doubt on China’s ability to buy $36.5 billion of U.S. agricultural goods in 2020.”
• Food Business News quoted McCormick & Co. CEO Lawrence E. Kurzius: “Certainly, the reduction in people traveling, being able to go out to eat, being able to shop at the grocery stores is not a positive for our business.”
• Ever the opportunists, the activist group PETA linked the spread of coronavirus to consumption of meat, and encouraged readers to “go vegan now.”
• In a company earnings release published January 28, Starbucks acknowledged, “The dynamic situation our partners in China are navigating as health officials respond to the coronavirus.” The Wall Street Journal added Starbucks “faces a new threat to business in China after temporarily closing more than half of its stores.”
• Citing a January 29 earnings call, Bloomberg noted, “All of McDonald’s restaurants in the cities of Wuhan, Ezhou, Huanggang, Qianjiang and Xiantao closed as of Jan. 24.”
• Bloomberg attributed the “surging number” of Wuhan coronavirus cases in China to “wet markets, where sales of freshly slaughtered, unpackaged meat have become the focus of an investigation into an outbreak of a potentially deadly lung virus.”

What’s Working for Workers?

Workers and labor relations issues continue to be a persistent theme impacting food production. A number of important discussions will affect working conditions on farms, in production facilities and throughout distribution channels. Immigration, plant safety, farm worker conditions and child labor took the spotlight this week.

• On January 27, Service Employees Union International President Rocio Sáenz called the Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of income-based restrictions on immigrant visas “cruel and inhumane.”
• On January 18, Western Growers Association broke down the new joint-employer requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Meatingplace spoke to a representative from The American Federation of Government Employees who sounded off about USDA’s recent inquiry regarding contracts for food safety inspectors.
• Civil Eats discussed the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives, and cited its potential to “stabilize the agricultural labor force and provide legal status to more than a million undocumented farmworkers.”
• The New York Times addressed the 13,253 child-labor violations Massachusetts leveled against Chipotle that resulted in more than $1.35 million in fines.

A Public Hero

On January 28, PBS debuted The Poison Squad, a documentary about chemist Dr. Harvey Wiley, on its American Experience series. The film describes a time near the turn of the last century when the government did not regulate food production. Dr. Wiley recruited a team of volunteers who consumed potentially harmful food additives to study their effects and, in doing so, gained celebrity status. Their efforts eventually led to the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act and the creation of the FDA.

• The same day, Eater posted an interview with Pulitzer Prize winner Deborah Blum, the author of the corresponding book: “Today, the European system is precautionary, this appears to be dangerous; the American system is more, people aren’t dropping in the streets so we’re going to permit it.”
• On January 29, Food Safety News editor Coral Beach called the piece “a provocative piece that will stun you.”
• Modern Farmer synopsized the documentary and listed some of the preservatives commonly used at the time — including borax and formaldehyde — adding, “thankfully, nobody died from the experiments.”

“Every year, Americans spend something like $35 billion on vitamins, minerals, botanicals and various other substances that are touted as health-giving but mostly do nothing at all. Nothing at all!”

Tamar Haspel, columnist, The Washington Post