A supervisor was said to have attacked a worker with a meat hook, according to a court affidavit.
After shutting down for a day, AgriProcessors reopened with a skeleton crew and has been hiring new employees to bring production up to previous levels.
On its Web site, the company says it is conducting its own investigation "into the circumstances which led to the recent work site enforcement action" and is looking for a new CEO.
Kosher merchants, and their customers, have received something of a break from the Jewish calendar. With Passover already behind them, the raid came during a lull between major Jewish observances.
As a result, retailers have not had to meet the spike in demand that comes when families prepare large holiday dinners.
The problems at AgriProcessors have been a boon for some competitors, including small ones such as Baltimore Kosher Meats, which processes and packages meat at its facility on Menlo Drive.
"People are looking for anything that Rubashkin supplied to them," said Joseph Goliger, the company president.
"That includes beef, lamb, veal and poultry and also deli items.
"Rubashkin did it all."
Kosher slaughterers and processors must observe strict Jewish dietary laws known as kashrut. Besides its prohibition against pork and shellfish, it mandates slaughter under the supervision of a trained rabbi.
Certain veins and fats are removed to drain the blood; the meat is soaked in water, and salt is added to draw additional blood before the meat is finally washed.
As most consumers know, prices have been rising for all meats - kosher and nonkosher - because of higher feed and transportation costs.
"But I have no intention to jack the price up just because of unavailability," said Goliger.
Retailers and customers may only now be feeling the impact of the situation in Postville.
At first, stores had enough inventory on hand to last for several days, said Menachem Lubinsky, president and CEO of Lubicom Marketing and Consulting and editor of Kosher Today.
"But as inventory is depleted, there are spot shortages here and there," said Lubinsky. "Some stores have supply, and others don't."
Shortages are fairly mild for cities like Baltimore with large Jewish populations and kosher markets that do business with multiple suppliers. When one supplier runs short, they can switch to another.
