Meat processing plant shuts down after worker urinates on production line

SMITHFIELD, Va. — A worker at a meat processing plant in Virginia is accused of urinating while working on a production line.

The alleged incident was captured on camera.

WAVY received whistleblower video from the production line inside Smithfield Foods. An employee is seen taking off his gloves and relieving himself under the production line. He then puts the gloves back on and continues to work.

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Smithfield Food officials confirm that the employee was urinating on the line. They told WAVY there was a swift internal investigation and production at the world's largest pork processing plant came to a grinding halt.

More than 50,000 pounds of product had to be thrown away, which is roughly 350 hogs worth approximately $190,000.

Officials said the processing line was fully cleaned and all the equipment was sterilized multiple times before operations resumed.

The employee accused of urinating on the line has been suspended while the company investigates.

The USDA food safety and inspection service is also looking into what happened.

CNN/WAVY