By Coronavirus outbreak at Scunthorpe factory
An outbreak of coronavirus has occurred at a meat processing factory in Scunthorpe, it has been confirmed.
At least 30 of the 434 workers have returned positive tests, prompting the factory to construct a mobile testing unit on site.
The Karro Food plant is said to be working closely with North Lincolnshire Council, Public Health England and the Health and Safety Executive to manage the situation.
A number of site checks have been carried out by the council, and enhanced safety measures suggested.
But, multiple members of staff have expressed concern over the measures, or the lack thereof, with some suggesting that employees have been told that wearing face masks is a food safety hazard.
A spokesperson for the firm said:
“Karro has always, and will continue to, follow government advice and guidelines which do everything possible to protect its people, including allowing its employees to choose to wear face coverings if it is deemed safe to do so.
“Those who have tested positive for Covid-19 and those identified as working near to a colleague or having extended close contact have been sent home to self-isolate for 14 days as a precaution and preventative measure.”
All of those who have tested positive, as well as number of people they came into close contact with, are now self-isolating.
Anybody who might have been exposed has been contacted through Test and Trace, according to North Lincolnshire Council.
“Karro had stringent Covid-19 measures in place, including social distancing, cleaning regimes and even automatically checking the temperature of every employee before entry to the factory,” a council spokesperson added.
“Despite this there have been a number of employees test positive for Covid-19.
“A site visit was carried out by environmental health and public health officers on Friday. Overall the procedures were found to be sound but a few improvements were suggested. Karro implemented these on Monday.”
The latest NHS figures show that there are currently 1,109 cases of Covid-19 in North Lincolnshire.
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