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President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would sign an executive order on food supply, as the U.S. was working with Tyson Foods during the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking in the Oval Office with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Trump said the order would address what he called “liability problems” in the food supply chain.
Meat-processing plants have weighed the risks of prosecution if they are blamed for spreading infection during the pandemic, as Indiana University’s Todd Haugh recently wrote. Tyson TSN, +6.11%, for example, suspended production at an Iowa pork processing plant due to a coronavirus outbreak among employees.
“We’re working with Tyson, which is one of the big companies in that world,” Trump said.
Reports said Trump plans to use the Defense Production Act to order meat companies to stay open, and the government will provide additional protective gear for employees as well as guidance.
Now read:Meat shortage looms as coronavirus shuts packing plants, leaving farmers with tough choices.
Trump will also give an afternoon speech on the Paycheck Protection Program, the small-business loan program that came under scrutiny after some large companies were allowed to receive aid. Last week, the Treasury Department said the PPP was not intended to help public companies “with substantial market value and access to capital markets” and gave such companies until May 7 to return their money.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Tuesday that the administration will audit small-business loans above $2 million, as he warned of criminal liability for companies who improperly got government cash.
The PPP resumed lending Monday morning. The emergency loan program for small businesses — which is designed to prevent layoffs during the coronavirus pandemic — had been closed since April 16, when it ran out of its initial $350 billion.
The PPP allows companies to have their loans forgiven if they spend money on payroll and benefits.
