LANSING (March 23, 2020) – Chuck Lippstreu, president of the Michigan Agri-Business Association, today issued the following statement regarding Governor Whitmer’s “Stay Home, Stay Safe” Executive Order: “Governor Whitmer’s announcement is an important step to protect public health across Michigan, including in small towns and rural communities, while enabling the critical work of food and agricultural production in our state to continue. Governor Whitmer identified our state’s food and agriculture sector as critical infrastructure, and businesses spanning Michigan agriculture are proceeding into the spring planting season with a strong focus on the health, safety and well-being of all employees.” Background: The Michigan food and agriculture supply chain is designated in Governor Whitmer’s Executive Order as a critical industry that may continue to operate. The order references the guidance memo issued by the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) entitled “Memorandum on Identification of Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers During COVID-19 Response.” This memo identifies a variety of functions in food and agricultural production as “critical.” # # #
