Written by Bernie Carr
Just a quick post today, as I share news that caught my attention.
Food processing plant fires have been occurring
Last August, 2021, a meat product company in Atlanta, Georgia Patak Meat Products, burned down.
Food plant fires, February, 2022
- The Gavilon Grain Elevator in Clovis, New Mexico had an explosion.
- Wisconsin River Meats in Mauston, Wisconsin suffered a major fire that destroyed part of its processing facility.
- A fire broke out in Louis Dreyfus Co. in Claypool, Indiana, a large soy processing and biodiesel plant.
- A boiler explosion at a Shearer’s Foods potato chip plant south of Hermiston, Oregon caused severe damage to the facility.
Food plant fires, March 2022
- A Nestle Hot Pockets facility in Jonesboro caught fire.
- Conveying equipment at Conagra Grocery Products production plant in Waterloo, Iowa was damaged by fire.
- A Pepsi distribution center in New Jersey had extensive damage after a fire broke out.
- A potato-processing plant, Penobscot McCrum, in Belfast, Maine had a massive fire.
- A massive fire burned much a Walmart fulfillment center in Plainfield, Indiana. The fire was so huge that ATF went to investigate.
Food plant fires, April 2022
- A Rio Fresh onion facility in South Texas was damaged by a large warehouse fire.
- Fire crews battled a massive fire for 16 hours at East Conway Beef and Pork in Conway, New Hampshire.
- A Taylor Farms salad packaging plant in Salinas, California had a massive blaze.
- A plane crashed 300 yards away from a General Mills manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia. It went straight down in an isolated area of the plant where the tractor-trailers were stored.
The list goes on. At least 16 food processing incidents have happened across the country as of this writing. On the other hand, we need to keep in mind there are around 36,000 or so such food processing plants in the U.S. Statistically, the number of plants destroyed is small. Most the fire investigations cite “no foul play” involved. We don’t know the “normal” percentages of annual fire damage to food producing plants so we have nothing to compare the recent events. The fires do affect the communities where the facilities are located, jobs are affected as the plants are temporarily closed. They may also cause delays in the products being produced.
What can you do about it?
Not something to get into a panic about, there’s really nothing we can do about it except be aware of what’s going on. They are beyond our control. I haven’t seen any reports on the aggregate impact. But it bears mentioning that these unfortunate occurrences could slow down production of food products at a time of high prices, supply chain shortages, and high demand. All you can do is keep building your pantry so you have food to tide you over if there is a food shortage.
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Bernie Carr is the founder of Apartment Prepper. She has written several books including the best-selling Prepper’s Pocket Guide, Jake and Miller’s Big Adventure, The Penny-Pinching Prepper and How to Prepare for Most Emergencies on a $50 a Month Budget. Bernie’s latest e-book, FRUGAL DIY has just been released on Amazon. Her work appears in sites such as the Allstate Blog and Clark.com, as well as print magazines such as Backwoods Survival Guide and Prepper Survival Guide. She has been featured in national publications such as Fox Business and Popular Mechanics. Learn more about Bernie here.
