SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that the operators of a South Dakota meatpacking plant where about 800 workers contracted the coronavirus implement a strict social distancing policy and find ways to overcome language barriers.
The CDC released a memo Thursday that specifically addresses the situation at the Smithfield Foods plant in Sioux Falls but that also may give an indication of the broader recommendations the agency is working on for meat processing plants nationwide.
Virginia-based Smithfield closed the plant indefinitely because of the outbreak amid complaints that it wasn’t doing enough to protect its workers.
The company has not indicated when it might reopen the plant.