
Everybody loves a good streak. Whether you’re talking about a winning streak your favorite team is on or a record-breaking most days in space (congrats, Peggy Whitson!), we all love to see someone on a roll. Gold Dust and Walker Farms are no different, especially when it comes to the safety of our employees.
Last week we celebrated our own streak – 500 days without a time-loss accident in the packing shed. To put that in perspective, the last time-loss accident our potato processing plant encountered was back in the first weeks of December, 2015. That was just a few months into the shipping season of 2015, and our shed crew then went all of 2016 without a time loss accident. Consider the number of trucks that have been loaded with chipping potatoes in that amount of time, as well as sacks filled and sewn shut, pallets wheeled around the floor and the sheer tonnage of potatoes that have passed through the plant, it’s truly an amazing feat. And as the spring 2017 shipping season is closing in, we stand an excellent chance of completing this season without an accident as well.
Streaks are fun – there’s no doubt about that. But this safety streak is more than just fun. It shows how conscientious our shed crews are and their dedication to getting the job done safely. It also helps us keep our insurance rates down. Most importantly, it means our employees are going home to their families every day without an injury.
To celebrate our 500 days of being accident free in the packing shed, Gold Dust took the office and shed crews to lunch at Bigoni’s Pizza Barn in Malin. As our crews feasted on pizza, plant manager Matt Thompson and CEO Bill Walker thanked everybody for their hard work and dedication to safety. “We have officially made it over 500 days without a time-loss accident in the shed. This shipping season alone we loaded just shy of 1000 export containers and 3000 truckloads of potatoes,” Matt told our employees. “Thank you for a great season and for putting safety above production.”
To echo what Matt said, thank you to our employees for putting safety first and here’s to an amazing shipping season! Keep up the good work!
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