The Joint Poultry Industry Safety Award Program is now accepting applications from poultry industry facilities that have demonstrated exceptional safety programs. This award program is open to members of the National Chicken Council (NCC), National Turkey Federation (NTF), and U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY). Eligible facilities include poultry processing plants, further processing facilities, egg processing plants, hatcheries, feed mills, animal support services and rendering facilities. To qualify, applicants must have implemented innovative and effective safety programs as well as have maintained injury and illness rates below the industry average for three consecutive years.

According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the poultry industry reported an injury rate of 2.4 per 100 full-time workers. This is below the rate of 3.2 for similar agricultural industries and lower than 3.3 for the entire food manufacturing sector, all manufacturing industries at 2.7 and all general industry at 2.6.

The 2024 incident rate of 2.4 in poultry processing marks a 90% reduction from 1994, when the recorded rate was 22.7, the oldest data available from BLS. This significant decline reflects the industry's ongoing commitment to improving workplace safety.

“Working safely is part of our industry’s values of taking care of our folks,” said Rick Hellinga, senior director of Safety, Health and Loss Prevention at Simmons Foods and chair of the Joint Poultry Industry Safety & Health Council. “Our workforce is at the heart of producing nutritious, affordable food, and the industry is continually advancing safety practices, training and technology to reduce workplace hazards. As a result, we have seen meaningful progress in reducing injuries and illnesses over the years.”

The Joint Poultry Industry Safety & Health Council is made up of members from NCC, NTF and USPOULTRY. Collectively, the three organizations represent 95% of the nation’s poultry products, and their members generate more than 1.4 million total U.S. jobs.

Award program rules, regulations and application forms can be accessed here. The application deadline is May 15. The annual awards will be presented during the National Safety Conference for the Poultry Industry, Aug. 17-19, at the Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa in Destin, Fla.