OSHA Cites Rana Meal Solutions for Machine Guarding Violations Following a Worker Injury
The company now faces $272,792 in proposed penalties.
Rana Meal Solutions LLC, a national ready-made food producer best known for providing Italian food products, faces federal scrutiny once again after an employee suffered a finger amputation.
According to a release dated Nov. 2, OSHA has cited the company for repeated and serious safety violations related to machine guarding. The incident involved an employee on a hot pasta sauce line at its Bartlett, Illinois, facility, who was attempting to retrieve a piece of a broken ball valve. OSHA inspectors found that the machinery had not been adequately de-energized during maintenance, a recurring issue the company was previously cited for in 2019 and 2020.
Following its investigation, OSHA inspectors cited Rana Meal Solutions for two repeat and 12 serious violations, with proposed penalties totaling $272,792. Violations include the company’s failure to conduct annual inspections of lockout/tagout procedures, improperly stored chemicals, an incomplete confined space safety program and inadequate machine guarding.
“Once again, our inspectors found Rana Meal Solutions LLC ignoring federal safety requirements to make sure dangerous machines are guarded or fully de-energized before they are maintained or serviced,” OSHA Area Director Jacob Scott in Naperville, Illinois, said in a statement. “In 2019 and 2020, OSHA found the company exposed employees to the risk of severe injuries and now, in 2023, their failure to follow industry and federal safety standards led one worker to suffer a painful, disfiguring injury.”
Rana Meal Solutions now has 15 business days from the receipt of the citations to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director or contest the findings.