Tyson Foods ( (TSN) – Get Tyson Foods, Inc. Class A Report) will spend $1.3 billion to automate parts of its production lines over the next three years, according to The Wall Street Journal.
That includes plans to invest more than $500 next year on automating some of the more labor-intensive aspects of its process, such as deboning chicken.
Like many industries, the meat packing field has been hit hard by the ongoing labor shortage, as Bloomberg recently noted that online postings for meat processing jobs are up 66% from a year ago, with some companies even offering a $3,000 signing bonus.
Tyson recently introduced a sick leave policy for plant workers in order to aid staffing efforts.
The lack of workers has contributed to the ongoing supply chain crisis that is pushing inflation, with some cuts increasing in price by 25% during the past year.
Increased automation is seen as a way for meat suppliers to cut down on their costs and to keep up with the increased demand seen by the rebounding restaurant industry.
The company expects to save about $450 million by the end of its 2024 fiscal year from the measures.
The turn towards automation and robotic meat-processing systems will reportedly take the place of the more difficult, high turnover jobs.
Employees whose jobs are made redundant by the measure will be offered different positions within the company.
The Arkansas-based company plans to open 12 new plants over the next two years, which it predicts will increase its overall production capacity by about 1.3 billion pounds.
At last check, Tyson’s stock price was up by 0.21% in midd.
