KIDRON, OHIO — A poultry company in Ohio was under investigation by federal officials earlier during October over the employment of minors

A report by NBC News stated that agents found more than two dozen minors, mainly from Guatemala, who were employed at the Gerber’s Poultry plant in Kidron, Ohio.

Homeland Security Investigations and Federal Bureau of Investigation agents began their investigation at the facility on Oct. 4, according to the report.

After the information was made public, Gerber’s Poultry released a statement on the incident to MEAT+POULTRY, saying it takes the legal employment and safety of the individuals at the company very seriously. The producer noted it has a formal identity verification procedure in place and dedicates significant resources to ensure Gerber’s Poultry employees and contractors are legally authorized to work.

“We also have strict policies against hiring minors in accordance with industry guidelines, rules and laws,” Gerber’s statement continued. “As such, we were surprised to learn that our Kidron, Ohio, plant is the subject of inquiry from federal law enforcement regarding the composition of our employees and some third-party contract employees. We are fully cooperating with that investigation. While we have confidence in our process to ensure we comply with all federal regulations to verify eligibility for employment, we are actively reviewing our policies to ensure compliance at every level and will continue to review our relationships with third-party vendors and their policies in similar fashion.” 

Several other child labor investigations have occurred throughout the United States in 2023.

Packers Sanitation Services Inc. (PSSI) agreed to pay $1.5 million in civil penalties in February after the US Department of Labor found that at least 102 workers from 13 to 17 years of age were cleaning meatpacking plants.

Other cases have been looked at or settled by state officials in Minnesota and Michigan.

In April, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack wrote a letter to members of the meat and poultry industry to take steps to prevent or eliminate illegal child labor in the food supply chain. 

A 16-year-old worker died in July while working at the Mar-Jac Poultry facility in Hattiesburg, Miss.

Tyson Foods and Perdue Farms are currently the subject of a child labor investigation conducted by the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. The DOL began investigating the companies following the publication of a New York Times Magazine article that reported illegal child labor allegations within the company.