Governor Polis & Ag Commissioner Greenberg Visit COVID-19 Vaccine Clinics for Critical Food & Agriculture Workers in Fort Morgan & Greeley

Polis administration making vaccines available to 220,000 critical food & ag workers

FORT MORGAN & GREELEY - Today, Governor Jared Polis and Colorado Department of Agriculture Commissioner Kate Greenberg visited COVID-19 vaccine clinics for critical food and agriculture workers.

The Polis administration has prioritized COVID-19 vaccines for the more than 220,000 critical food and agriculture workers. Starting today agricultural workers will be able to start getting vaccines in Colorado.

“I’m proud of the progress Colorado has made in getting shots of this life-saving vaccine into arms. We know that each shot in an arm is one step closer to ending this crisis,” said Governor Jared Polis. “Throughout this challenging year, our frontline food and agricultural workers have been critical to keeping our food supply up running and supporting our economy. Thanks to Commissioner Greenberg’s important efforts and our vaccine team, my administration was able to partner with everyone involved to make these clinics a reality. Every Coloradan who wants a shot will get a shot and these efforts are an important step.”

Governor Polis visited Evans Early Childhood Center in Fort Morgan where he spoke with educators and students. Then Governor Polis and Commissioner Greenberg visited the Cargill vaccine clinic and met with workers receiving the vaccine. 

Gov. Polis and Commissioner Greenberg then visited and toured the JBS vaccine clinic in Greeley. Later in the afternoon Gov. Polis met with the founders and employees of the award winning brewery Weldworks in Greeley. 

Representatives from Cargill and Marathon Health emphasized the importance of putting people’s health first:

“Our response throughout this pandemic is guided by our values – putting people first and doing the right thing,” said Jon Nash, president of Cargill’s protein North America business. “We are thankful for the partnership with Governor Polis, the Northeast Colorado Health department, Marathon Health and the local union chapter who join us in our commitment to protect the health and safety of our employees in Fort Morgan. They are working tirelessly to maintain a food supply for grocery stores, restaurants and American consumers.”

“We would like to thank the Governor and his staff for their commitment to the  health and safety of our members at the meat packing plant in Fort Morgan by providing the COVID-19 Vaccinations.  We are excited about the continued partnership between Governor Polis and Teamsters Local Union No. 455, as we move forward to vaccinate all essential workers,” said Steve Vairma, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local Union No. 455.

“This pandemic has shown just how much our society depends on essential workers each and every day – and we’re proud to be part of the team that is helping make sure Cargill workers stay healthy through worksite vaccinations,” said Jeff Wells MD, CEO and co-founder of Marathon Health. “Marathon Health has been a trusted healthcare partner to Cargill for six years delivering primary care and specialty services in 12 health centers across nine states. We are here to support them again by not only administering the vaccine, but navigating the process – from regulations to logistics and reporting.  Marathon Health knows that employers play a vital role in helping the U.S. achieve its vaccination goals, and we’re  pleased to be working with Cargill, the Northeast Colorado health department, Governor Polis and the local Union chapter to help lead the way.”

At JBS, representatives from the company, as well as United Food And Commercial Workers Union Local 7 acknowledged the crisis faced during the past year and thanked the Governor for his partnership.

“JBS USA is honored to partner with Governor Polis, the Colorado Department of Public Health, the National Guard and local unions to provide an additional layer of protection to our team members,” said Andre Nogueira, JBS USA CEO. “We decided to halt operations at the Greeley beef plant today and tomorrow to provide the opportunity of vaccination to thousands of our team members from our operations across Colorado – from Denver to Greeley to Lafayette. I am proud of our Greeley beef team for working so hard every day for more than a year to protect themselves, our fellow team members and our community. We thank Governor Polis for prioritizing the health and safety of the men and women who help feed Colorado and the world, and for his steadfast leadership during this public health crisis.”

“We are appreciative of Governor Polis, Colorado state officials and the National Guard for their continued partnership and efforts to ensure Local 7 members and workers at the JBS plant in Greeley, who helped kept our country’s food supply chains operational, have direct access to the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Kim Cordova, president of the United Food And Commercial Workers Union Local 7. “Our 3,000 Union members, who were quickly deemed essential workers when this pandemic began, have disproportionately experienced the dangers of this virus – losing coworkers, family members and friends to this awful disease. Access to the vaccine is the first of many steps that will need to be taken to stop the continued spread of this virus and keep these essential workers safe.”