Dear Bloomingfoods Owner-Members & Shoppers,
Over the past few weeks, concerns about the US food supply chain have made national news as several large meat processing and packaging plants suspended operations due to COVID-19 outbreaks within their workforce. With this uncertainty, we want to take a moment to share what Bloomingfoods is doing to maintain a safe and stable meat supply.
We Value Local!
Most of our meat products are sourced locally. By local we mean that these products are sourced within the state of Indiana. This results in less miles traveled and fewer handoffs between farms and your table. This also means that we have largely been unaffected by the closures of these large processing and packaging plants, because we work primarily with local producers who in turn work with local processing and packaging companies.
Our Suppliers
Our two biggest suppliers are Miller Poultry for poultry and Fischer Farms for beef and pork. Both are local. Throughout the pandemic we have been in close contact with both producers, along with our other producers and distributors. All have indicated that they’ve added new protocols to further protect their workforce, their products, and their customers. Thus far, any shortages that Bloomingfoods has experienced have been attributed to inflated customer demand and not to the closures of large packaging and processing plants that have been featured in national news stories.
However, we do want to let our customers know that on May 4th, Miller Poultry paused operations at their plant in Steuben County, Indiana. This was done for precautionary reasons as they awaited COVID-19 test results for their employees. Production resumed on Tuesday at 70% capacity and will continue at this capacity through Saturday. Full production is expected to resume again on Monday, May 11th as long as employees currently in quarantine are able to return to work.
With that said, we will continue to closely monitor this situation and will remain in close contact with our producers and distributors. Like us, they too are focused on keeping their staff, products, and customers safe. In the event that our supply chain becomes compromised, we will quickly pivot to alternative sources that allow us to maintain our commitment to providing healthy, high-quality, and sustainable products.
Thank you for your continued support and trust in Bloomingfoods!
Sincerely,
Jordan Maxedon, Bloomingfoods East Deli Manager & Jim Meehan, Bloomingfoods Near West Deli Manager