EATON — While Henny Penny Corporation is considered an essential business per the “stay at home” order issued by the Ohio Department of Health, Henny Penny is also deeply committed to a “People First” philosophy in prioritizing the well-being of its employee owners in all business decisions.

As a result, according to a press release, effective Monday, March 23, the company suspended general manufacturing operations until Monday, April 6.

All Henny Penny employee owners will be paid during this two-week period. Additionally, the company is taking specific steps to further enhance the safety of its manufacturing environment, including:

•Deep cleaning and sanitation of surfaces

•Evaluating every production line and make modifications as necessary to ensure appropriate social distancing measures

•Replenishing cleaning products, sanitizing items, and thermometers

Those employee owners who were able began working from home the week of March 16 and will continue to do so to maintain critical business functions during this two-week period. The company takes seriously its responsibility to support its customers as they work to feed their guests around the world.

“When we look back on these extraordinary times, we wanted to be proud of the decisions we made—what we did and how we did it,” said Rob Connelly, Henny Penny CEO & Chairman. “We also wanted our employee owners, suppliers, customers and the community to be proud of how we handled this crisis. The decisions we’ve made have focused on how we best take care of each other as employee owners, how we best support our customers—who are a vital part of feeding communities—and how we best support our communities during this crisis. We’ve made every decision—and there have been many—through that lens.”

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, Henny Penny has worked with local organizations to address food access and security for the most vulnerable in local communities. Henny Penny has partnered with The Dayton Food bank to fund food boxes that will be delivered to seniors in Preble County. The company also extended use of company vehicles for The Once Around Shop in Eaton to pick up food at the food bank and the Preble County Success Program to help distribute nearly 10,000 bags of food for school children in need while local schools are closed.

In closing, Connelly said, “We are thinking of our employee owners, their family and friends, our partners around the world, and our community during this time of great uncertainty. Please take care of yourselves and your loved ones as we work together to flatten the curve.”