OSHA Fines Food Processor $60K

Mount Vernon food processor, U.F.S Industries Inc., has been cited by OSHA for allegedly repeating nine serious violations of workplace safety standards.
OSHA Fines Food Processor $60K
Chickens hang on a production line of a food processing plant seen here in this file photo. (SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images)
Amelia Pang
12/20/2012
Updated:
10/1/2015
<a><img class="size-large wp-image-1773325" title="Chickens hang on a production line of a food processing plant seen here in this file photo. (SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images)" src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/71589494.jpg" alt="Chickens hang on a production line of a food processing plant seen here in this file photo. (SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images)" width="590" height="368"/></a>
Chickens hang on a production line of a food processing plant seen here in this file photo. (SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images)

NEW YORK—Mount Vernon food processor, U.F.S Industries Inc., has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for allegedly repeating nine serious violations of workplace safety standards.

U.F.S. faces $60,830 of total proposed fines. The manufacturer supplies deli-style salads, sandwiches, pastas, cream cheese, desserts, and prepared entrees for distributors and warehouses who then ship the products to schools, prisons, and grocery stores. Its products are labeled as Sally Sherman Foods.

There were seven repeated violations such as insufficient training and procedures for controlling hazardous energy sources, and a lack of machine guarding and fall protection. Similar violations were cited at the plant in 2009, 2010, and 2011.

U.F.S. was also issued two serious citations where death or serious physical harm were likely to occur: an uncapped carbon dioxide cylinder and the use of a receptacle not designed for wet locations.

Sally Sherman Foods has confirmed that its president, plant controller, as well as other executives are no longer with the company.

Thomas Recine, the plant’s new vice president as of the last week of October, said that the plant has spent $49,000 spent on the necessary repairs and that the safety standards have been met. “We have inherited a mess... but safety is paramount to us,” he said.

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Amelia Pang is a New York-based, award-winning journalist. She covers local news and specializes in long-form, narrative writing. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in journalism and global studies from the New School. Subscribe to her newsletter: http://tinyletter.com/ameliapang
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