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The Walmart-owned retailer said on Friday (June 19, 2020) that the British supermarket had temporarily shut down due to an outbreak of COVID-19 in an Asda-owned meat processor in the north of England.
Asda said they were working with public health authorities to ensure staff screening. The factory in Cleckheaton, West Yorkshire, was not forced to close. It is turned off as a precaution. It did not confirm how many cases were found.
“As soon as we became aware that some colleagues at our Kober site may have Covid-19, we responded swiftly and worked collaboratively with the local authority and Public Health England to test all colleagues,” a joint statement by Asda and Kober Limited, the firm which runs the plant, said.
The closure is the latest in a series of outbreaks involving meat processing centers across Europe and the United States. On Thursday, one of Britain's largest food companies suspended production after more than 50 positive tests.
The British Trade Union Confederation said it had received reports of five more suspected outbreaks at various meat processing plants without giving further details.
Unions say employers need to do more to protect their workers, while academic experts point to the risks of working in a factory environment.
"Factories and in particular indoor areas that are cold and humid are the perfect environment for the coronavirus to prolong and spread," said Lawrence Young, a professor of molecular Oncology at the University of Warwick.
“The coronavirus survives on a cold surface. In the absence of ventilation and sunlight, infected people are more likely to spread viral droplets, stabilize, and remain durable.”
Source: Online/SZK
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