This is a subscriber-only article
Kildare Chilling has told farmers that there are “no quotes at the moment”, as testing and deep cleaning at the plant continues following an outbreak of COVID-19.
In text sent to farmer suppliers, Kildare Chilling said they were “not killing sheep tomorrow or maybe for the rest of the week due to COVID-19 events”.
They added that they would know more by Friday 7 August and warned that all sheep would have to be booked in advance of arrival.
There has been heightened scrutiny of outbreaks in meat slaughtering and processing plants following further clusters
“If you arrive, you have to take the sheep home,” the text from the factory told farmers.
On Tuesday this week, the plant reported an outbreak of the virus among workers. It is understood that the number of workers infected is significant and more test results from the factory are due by the end of this week.
It’s understood that the factory is working fully with the HSE and Meat Industry Ireland said all their members were complying with HSE protocol, but continued vigilance was needed.
More outbreaks
There has been heightened scrutiny of outbreaks in meat slaughtering and processing plants following further clusters in O’Brien’s Fine Foods, the Kildare-based brand behind Brady Ham, and Carrolls Cuisine in Offaly.
There was also a third outbreak in Kildare last week at Irish Dog Foods. More details of cases are expected in the Department of Health briefing on Friday 7 August, but the National Public Health Emergency Team has not ruled out advising localised restrictions.
SHARING OPTIONS: