LONDON (Reuters) – Two hundred other people who used to harvest on a farm near Malvern in England’s West Midlands were asked to self-isolate after 73 tested positive for COVID-19, Public Health England (PHE) and Herefordshire Council said Sunday.
The number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases across Britain each day has been falling from a peak of more than 6,000 in April to 650 in the latest figures released on Sunday, despite wider availability of testing.
However, there have been local outbreaks, with a significant number linked to meat packing plants.
During the harvest season, the staff who select and pack vegetables live in cell homes on the farm.
Katie Spence, director of fitness coverage at PHE Midlands, said the company has implemented infection measures to control the threat of staff exposure to COVID-19.
“Despite these measures, a small number of staff have become symptomatic before this week and they and some close contacts between the workforce were tested and discovered in the first place,” he said.
“As we have noticed a global trend of giant food manufacturers to deal with epidemics, as a precautionary measure, the resolution was taken to control the entire workforce.”
She said the initial effects showed a significant percentage of positive cases, Americans were asymptomatic.
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