BEAUMONT, Texas — Something most people don't think about is the process that takes place before you see your favorite meat on grocery store shelves.
Right now, thanks to the pandemic, one link in that chain is broken and it's causing concern.
You may have noticed that some of your favorite cuts may be missing.
The reason is more than a dozen meat processing plants across the country have shut down after workers contracted COVID-19.
That means livestock farmer, like Stacy Jannise in Hamshire are now unable to sell.
"When your packing houses are shut down, there's nowhere to go," Jannise said. "We're definitely concerned."
She says the losses are projected to reach $13 billion in the cattle industry alone.
Companies like COSTCO, H-E-B and Kroger have already started limiting the amount of meat customers can buy.
Jannise says calling this a food shortage wouldn't be entirely true.
"As far as enough meat to meet the supply, we've got it. We can feed America," Jannise said.
It all comes down to plants reopening.
According to the CDC, almost 5,000 meat and poultry workers nationwide have gotten sick. Twenty have died.
Plants have started deep cleaning facilities and giving incentives to workers in an effort to quickly get the vital piece of the supply chain back on track.
Jannise says adversity is something farmers in west Jefferson County no all too well.
"Most of the ranchers in this area suffered losses in both of those floods, as well as this. It's a triple whammy and it's a dangerous place to be in right now," Jannise said.
If you're shopping for meat, the limitations you may find are for ground beef, chicken and pork.
H-E-B is limiting shoppers to 4 packages of ground beef per visit, 4 packages of chicken and 2 briskets.
