More than 500 Tyson Foods staff test Covid-19 positive at Iowa plant

US-based meat producer Tyson Foods is reportedly closing its pork plant in Storm Lake, Iowa, as more than 500 employees working at the facility were tested positive for Covid-19.

Reuters reported that an Iowa state official announced that 555 employees working at the Tyson’s Storm Lake plant, which is said to 22% of the workforce at the facility.

Tyson is reportedly planning to stop hogs slaughtering at the facility and close the facility in two days after processing the animals.

According to a statement, the company will be reopening the facility next week and resume operations after completing additional deep cleaning and sanitisation of the entire facility.

Tyson Foods explained that the closure is due to a delay in Covid-19 testing results and employee absences.

On the other hand, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union has urged the US administration and meat companies to take additional measures to protect workers at meatpacking plants.

According to UFCW, there have already been at least 44 meatpacking worker deaths and more than 3,000 meatpacking workers tested positive for Covid-19.

UFCW International president Marc Perrone said: “The best way to protect our food supply is to protect the people who work within it.

“From frontline food processing workers to farmers and ranchers, we are all critical to keeping American families fed during this crisis. Enacting strong worker safety standards inside meatpacking plants will help people outside of them as well and ensure every link in our food supply chain is secure.”

Earlier this month, Tyson Foods reported that 570 individuals tested positive for Covid-19 at its poultry facility in Wilkesboro, North Carolina.

The results were based on the tests conducted on 2,244 team members and contractors who work at the facility, and the majority of those who were confirmed did not display any symptoms and otherwise would not have been identified.

The company noted that it is committed to disclosing the test results to keep its team members and the community safe.