Rural counties with covid-19 outbreaks and meatpacking plants have some of the highest infection rates in the US

Infection rate per 100,000; white dots are meatpacking plants
(Daily Yonder map; click the image to enlarge it or click here for the interactive version)

Most of the rural counties with the highest covid-19 infection rates are home to meatpacking plants where workers have been sickened by the disease. Such rural counties, which have some of the highest infection rates nationwide, have an average infection rate an average of five times higher than other rural counties, according to a data analysis by The Daily Yonder and the Food & Environment Reporting Network.

"Rural counties with covid-19 cases linked to meatpacking plants have an average infection rate of nearly 1,100 per 100,000, according to the analysis of data on covid-19 cases and deaths, Leah Douglas and Tim Marema report for the Yonder. "The data used in the analysis was from USA Facts. In rural counties without meatpacking plant-linked outbreaks, the average infection rate is only 209 cases per 100,000."

Click here for more data from the analysis, including an interactive county-level map, county rankings, and more.

Meatpacking production is almost back at normal capacity, but some lawmakers and labor advocates say protections for workers are still lacking, Ryan McCrimmon reports for Politico's Morning Agriculture.