Dawn Meats on the Waterford/Kilkenny border has been identified as the location of a workplace cluster of Covid-19 cases.
It was confirmed by the Health Minister yesterday that the company has 28 cases currently linked to it.
The group has a number of sections, and it's understood that it is the beef section at Grannagh which is the part affected.
In a statement issued at 10am on Thursday morning, the company said it was working closely with the HSE and other government agencies to mitigate the risk of Covid-19 transmission.
Dawn Meats said it supported mass testing, but did not confirm the number of cases at their facility. The company also said that staff members obliged to self-isolate would continue to be paid.
Waterford Minister of State Mary Butler said to the best of her knowledge the factory remains open and a deep clean has not taken place:
"The part of the factory that has the outbreak, in my opinion in best practice, it needs to be closed immediately for an intensive deep clean. We've seen this recently in Kildare, Offaly and Laois when they were closed down and all the meat factories did an intensive deep clean and I believe this needs to happen as a matter of urgency today."
In response, the company released a further statement to say that "All Dawn Meats facilities throughout Ireland undergo weekend deep cleaning as part of our Covid control program".
Sinn Féin Health Spokesperson and TD for Waterford David Cullinane has called for full transparency:
“The outbreak at Dawn Meats is obviously a concern. I welcome clarification from the company but it was a long time coming. It is hugely important that we have a flow of information from the company to their staff but also to public representatives and the local media.
“There are huge public interest issues here. We need reassurance that all public health responses that should be in place are in place. This includes infection control teams from the HSE on site and rigorous testing, tracing and isolating.
“I am calling for full transparency and all information related to this outbreak to be made publicly available. I have sought a detailed note from the Minister for Health on what measures are in place to contain the outbreak.”
An additional 9 cases were confirmed here yesterday, and Waterford now has the fourth highest incidence rate in the country.
Full Statement
Dawn Meats COVID-19 update
"Dawn Meats continues to work closely with the HSE and other Government agencies in maintaining its implementation of comprehensive measures to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Dawn Meats supports the recent mass testing being carried out across all meat processing plants in the country.
The incidence of Covid-19 in the meat processing sector remains low, with the HSE’s mass testing programme confirming 72 cases out of 15,842 tests conducted, a positive test rate of 0.45%.
Whilst we do not plan to publish updates or give commentary on test results at specific plants, where positive tests are identified we will ensure all staff, close contacts, and the HSE and relevant authorities are fully informed. Dawn Meats approach is that any staff member who may be obliged to self-isolate in line with HSE guidelines, will continue to be be paid.
The production of food is an essential service that it is important to maintain, but it has to be done in a manner that deals with the risk of Covid appropriately. We want to thank the health workers who have supported our staff’s health and well-being, and our staff and our farmer suppliers who work daily to produce high quality food for consumers nationally and across the world."
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