Frank Bertolino can still remember the first paycheck he ever received in America. It was in 1956, and the 20-year-old had just come to the country from Sicily, along with the rest of his family. He had worked in the fish business with his father in the old country, but when they settled in Boston, his cousin got him a job as a carpenter. They made caskets.

The COVID-19 headlines about meatpacking and processing plants closing should be enough for any similar business to pause and reflect: This could easily happen to anyone in the food and beverage industry.