Finger Amputations Draw Fine For Lakewood Ice Cream Company: OSHA

LAKEWOOD, NJ — A Lakewood ice cream company faces a $237,176 fine after investigators say the company "willfully failed" to take steps to protect employees making repairs after two incidents where workers lost fingers, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced.

Two workers suffered "severe amputation injuries" on an ice cream wrapper machine at the Fieldbrook Foods Corp. manufacturing plant in Lakewood, one in 2018 and the second in 2020, the OSHA announcement said.

Wells Enterprises, which acquired Fieldbrook Foods in 2019, said it is disputing the OSHA findings.

"Wells Enterprises considers workplace safety an utmost priority, and we cooperated fully with OSHA's investigation conducted at the Lakewood, New Jersey, manufacturing facility in September 2020," the company said in a statement to Patch. "Wells disputes OSHA's findings and intends to contest the citation to attempt to set the record straight."

"Wells is committed to keeping employees safe while at work, and we continuously monitor
our safety policies and procedures for the benefit of all our employees," the statement said.

In 2020, a maintenance mechanic lost two fingers while repairing the same machine, the OSHA report said. A September 2020 investigation found Fieldbrook Foods willfully failed to shut down and isolate energy to the machine during repair work, it said.

The refusal to shut down the machine violated safety standards for preventing accidental machine startup, a process known as lockout/tagout, OSHA said. Fieldbrook Foods employs about 200 workers in Lakewood.

“Fieldbrook Foods knew that machines must be completely disabled before workers perform service and maintenance," said Paula Dixon-Roderick, area director for OSHA. "Instead of addressing the cited amputation hazards which led to two serious injuries, the company continues to expose its workers to dangerous machinery.”

Fieldbrook Foods Corp. produces and sells frozen desserts under the Blue Bunny, Blue Ribbon, Original Bomb Pop and other brands. The company is the largest privately held, family-owned ice cream manufacturer in the United States.

Founded in 1913 in LeMars, Iowa, Wells produces more than 150 million gallons of ice cream per year and distributes products in all 50 states.

OSHA's announcement said the company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings.

NOTE: This article has been updated with a statement from Wells Enterprises.

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