Nebraska Innovation Campus
Date of this Version
5-20-2020
Document Type
Article
Citation
USDA meatpacking inspectors receive hand sanitizer made at Nebraska U (https://news.unl.edu/newsrooms/today/article/usdameatpacking- inspectors-receive-hand-sanitizer-made-at-nebraska-u/)
Abstract
Food safety inspectors employed by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service are receiving a supply of hand sanitizer thanks to an innovative partnership between Nebraska’s ethanol industry and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The hand sanitizer will be used by the men and women responsible for inspecting more than 6,500 meat-processing facilities across the country, ranging from “mom-and-pop” facilities that handle only a few animals at a time to the giant beef, poultry and pork plants that employ thousands of people. “Food Safety and Inspection Service inspectors provide critical support to our food supply chain and also to the livestock industry across our nation,” Chancellor Ronnie Green said.“Thanks to our UNL ingenuity and the generosity of our Nebraska ethanol industry, we are pleased to get hand sanitizer into their possession so they can stay safe at their jobs.” Hunter Flodman, an engineering professor of practice at Nebraska who has helped spearhead the project, said more than 6,800 gallons of hand sanitizer has been shipped to the USDA,with the possibility of significantly more gallons being supplied in coming weeks. Flodman serves as technical adviser to the Nebraska Ethanol Board. Terry Howell, executivedirector of the Food Processing Center at Nebraska Innovation Campus, also leads the project on behalf of the university. “This project represents the true grit of Nebraskans and the innovative ways the agriculture community joins together to take care of one another,” said Nebraska Department of Agriculture Director Steve Wellman. “We appreciate the dedication and donations that theethanol industry, hard hit by this virus themselves, has made to see this project through, as well as the perseverance of the Food Processing Center staff to create a product that will help slow the spread of COVID-19.”
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