The JBS packing plant in Worthington and the Smithfield Foods plant in Sioux Falls have reopened on a limited basis. There is a significant backlog of hogs with estimates of 10,000 animals being put down on a daily basis in Minnesota. Dr. Brad Leuwerke, who is a veterinarian with the Swine Vet Center in St. Peter, Minnesota, is seeing an industry that is under extreme stress. Farmers have been euthanizing pigs for a couple weeks and “we likely don’t completely understand the mental toll they are taking on with the depopulation of pigs.” Minnesota Rural Mental Health Specialist Ted Matthews was part of a Pork Checkoff program on this sensitive topic. Matthews said every person handles stress differently, but this is a time to increase communication and rely on family and friends.
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