AUSTIN, MINN. – Like many food manufacturing companies, leaders of Hormel Foods Corp. announced the company’s efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and updated the status of its processing facilities and offices.

Enhanced protocols at its offices include implementing business travel restrictions and exercising working-from-home options for employees as well as limiting visitors and face-to-face meetings. Education about the virus and more robust sanitation practices are also commitments the company has made to minimize the risk to employees.

Jim Snee, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said the company’s processing plants are continuing to run on normal operating schedules. Snee said the company is aware that many restaurants and bars across the country have been forced to close to limit the spread of the virus, which is causing food-processing companies like Hormel to adjust to shifting demand in its business segments.

“We know the foodservice industry is facing tremendous challenges, and we are positioned to help distributors and operators through this difficult time,” Snee said. “Our dedicated salesforce is working to deliver innovative products and solutions to meet the changing dynamics in this industry.

“We understand the critical role we play in providing safe and high-quality food to people around the world. We have a responsibility to ensure our products are available when needed, and we are working closely with our retail and foodservice customers to provide a steady supply of all our products, just as we have done over the last 129 years.”

Snee praised his company’s production employees for continuing to produce Hormel’s diverse categories of food during a global crisis.

To help support the communities where it operates, Hormel announced donations of products and cash totaling $1 million to provide hunger relief and address food insecurity resulting from the crisis.

“We are a great neighbor in the communities where we live and work and can be counted on to do even more during a time like this,” Snee said.