Tyson Foods, Cargill idle US beef plants due to snowstorm

By Tom Polansek

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Tyson Foods (NYSE:) and Cargill said on Tuesday it suspended operations at beef processing plants in Kansas due to a massive snowstorm, disrupting U.S. meat production.

Cargill, a major producer of ground beef, said its plant in Dodge City, Kansas, shut due to snow, cold and a loss of power. The plant will re-open once power returns, the company said.

Tyson said it canceled both shifts at its sprawling beef plant in Holcomb, Kansas, after allowing some workers the option of “sheltering in place” at the slaugherhouse on Monday night.

Blizzard conditions stranded dozens of cars on Kansas roads near the beef plants on Monday, officials said.