CHICAGO, Ill. (Reuters) — Cargill resumed receiving cattle for slaughter at its Dodge City, Kansas, beef plant Oct. 21 after an explosion the previous week, a company spokesperson said.
The explosion, which occurred Oct. 17 in a stand-alone building outside the main facility and injured two workers, prompted the company to suspend some shifts and stop receiving livestock.
However, the plant continued to package beef from carcasses it had on hand at the time of the blast.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell Oct. 18 due in part to fears that the interruption at the plant would cause cattle supplies to back up at feedlots.
A fire in August at a Tyson Foods Inc. slaughterhouse in Kansas depressed cattle futures while boosting beef prices.
