Dozens of Meat Processing Plants Expected to Shut Down Under New EPA Rules

Food prices—especially meat and poultry—have skyrocketed in the past four years and could be exacerbated further next year when new EPA rules for meat processors go into effect.

That’s because an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposal is expected to put some meat processors out of business, resulting in potential job losses and supply chain disruptions.

When asked to respond to critics who say the changes are part of an agenda to reduce meat consumption, Nye cited reasons for the change such as outdated regulations and the location of meat processing facilities near communities with “environmental justice concerns.” In its rationale for rejecting two of the proposed options, the EPA cited concerns that they could “impede the Biden administration’s initiatives to expand independent meat and poultry processing capacity and enhance the resilience of the food supply chain.” The administration wants to protect against the type of supply chain disruption that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic, it said.

Next year could see still higher meat and poultry prices at the grocery store, analysts say.

The proposal has met with opposition from dozens of states, industry stakeholders, and policy experts, who fear it will harm the industry, the food supply, and consumers.

The EPA estimates that the new rules would reduce pollutants discharged through wastewater from processing facilities by about 100 million pounds per year.

In 2019, the groups challenged the Trump administration under the Clean Water Act for not updating aging water pollution control standards for slaughterhouses and meat processing plants. 

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