Salisbury, Md. (Friday, September 6, 2013) — Associates at Perdue’s processing operation in Perry, Ga., achieved a safety milestone on Aug. 1 after working more than 16 million production hours without experiencing an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recordable lost-time case. Counting toward the milestone began in January 2009.

To celebrate, the operation’s 1,600 associates were served lunch on Aug. 28 and received a commemorative Perdue T-shirt in recognition of their achievement.

“It is very important to recognize that it was our associates who made this happen,” said Wally Hunter, director of operations. “Perdue has a strong safety program, but it takes the cooperation and commitment of all of our associates to make it work.”

According to Hunter, Perdue has a standard, companywide safety program that encourages active employee participation and input. Associates take part in safety committees, which meet regularly to discuss safety issues, as well as perform safety inspections before the start of each shift.  Associates have the authority to stop production or prevent start-up if any unsafe condition exists.  In addition, every associate attends safety awareness training, and is encouraged to look for and report any potential hazard.
  
Perdue is a leader in workplace safety
Perdue is a leader in workplace safety among all Georgia industries and all industries nationwide combined. According to statistics released by the U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, during their most recently reported year in 2011, the lost-time rate for all Georgia industries combined was 0.90 per 100 workers.

According to those same Bureau of Labor statistics, the nationwide lost-time rate for all industries combined for that same year was 1.20 per 100 workers annually, while Perdue’s companywide rate during that year was 0.16 per 100 associates. As of March 2012, Perdue’s lost-time rate was 0.15 per 100 associates.

Perdue’s current companywide OSHA Total Recordable Incident Rate is 2.32 as compared to the current Poultry Industry rate of 5.80, and are also better than the General Manufacturing rate of 4.20.

About Perdue Farms
Perdue Farms is the parent company of Perdue Foods and Perdue AgriBusiness, and represents the Perdue family ownership.  Since our beginning on Arthur Perdue’s farm in 1920, through expansion into agribusiness and the introduction of the Perdue brand of chicken and turkey under Frank Perdue, to our third-generation of family leadership with Chairman Jim Perdue, we’ve remained a family-owned, family-operated business dedicated to making Perdue the most trusted name in food and agricultural products.  To learn more about Perdue, visit www.perduefarms.com™.