Last spring, Tyson Foods faced the perfect storm — higher production costs, lower levels of productivity and softer demand, reports CNBC. In April, thousands of Tyson workers were infected with the coronavirus at processing plants and facilities were forced to shut down.
In August 2020, Tyson reported fiscal third-quarter profits declined 22% from a year earlier. The company ousted CEO Noel White amid falling sales and named Dean Banks, its president, as his successor.
After decades of industry consolidation, some of Tyson’s problems may have been self-inflicted.
“Essentially what Covid-19 showed was the profound fragility that happens when you move all of your production into as few slaughterhouses as possible," Christopher Leonard, author of “The Meat Racket.” told CNBC.
