25% of workers at Tyson food processing plant test positive for COVID-19

The company noted that 75% of the workers who tested positive were asymptomatic.

By ZACHARY KEYSER
Tyson Foods brand frozen chicken wings are pictured in a grocery store freezer in the Manhattan borough of New York City. (photo credit: REUTERS)
Tyson Foods brand frozen chicken wings are pictured in a grocery store freezer in the Manhattan borough of New York City.
(photo credit: REUTERS)
A little over 25% of the workers at Tyson Foods' Storm Lake pork processing plant in Iowa tested positive for COVID-19, the company announced Tuesday.
A total of 591 employees were reported to have contracted coronavirus infections, out of the 2,303 employees who work at the facility, according to local sources.
The company noted that 75% of the workers who tested positive were asymptomatic.
"Our top priority is the health and safety of our team members, and we continue to take strong action to ensure they feel protected in their community and when they come to work," Senior Vice President of Health and Safety for Tyson Foods Tom Brower, said in the statement, according to the Sioux City Times. "As in Storm Lake, we are routinely finding high levels of asymptomatic positives when we test widely at our plants and because of that, we can do a public service by sharing the results with the local community."
Fifty-eight employees were diagnosed either by the health department or their local health care providers, the other 533 were tested onsite by the company from May 18 to 21. Tyson said it conducted large-scale COVID-19 testing at the plant in northwestern Iowa and implemented safety measures to protect employees like requiring them to wear masks.
"We are thankful for the efforts of Tyson Foods' management and team members to ensure the safety of employees as they continue in the best manner possible to process food for our country," Storm Lake's city manager Keri Navratil said in the statement, according to the Sioux City Times. "We know that the efforts to protect Tyson team members also protect their families and, in turn, our other residents."
Those who tested positive will receive paid leave for the duration of their absence. They will be allowed to come back to work once they meet "the criteria established by both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Tyson," according to the Sioux City Times.
On Thursday, Tyson Foods Inc said it will temporarily close down the Iowa pork plant, a month after US President Donald Trump ordered slaughterhouses to stay open to protect the country's food supply.
Tyson will stop slaughtering hogs at the facility and finish processing the animals over the next two days, according to a statement.
It will resume operations next week following "additional deep cleaning and sanitizing of the entire facility," the statement said. The closure is due partly to a delay in COVID-19 testing results and employee absences, according to Tyson.
Meat processors like Tyson Foods, WH Group's Smithfield Foods and JBS USA temporarily closed about 20 slaughterhouses last month as workers fell ill with the new coronavirus, leading to shortages of certain products in grocery stores. Production remains lower than normal because of increased absenteeism and social distancing among employees.
The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union called on the Trump administration and meat companies to do more to protect workers. The union reported more than 3,000 infections and 44 deaths among U.S. meatpacking workers, up from 35 deaths as of May 12.
"Too many workers are being sent back into meatpacking plants without adequate protections in place, reigniting more outbreaks in the plants and our communities," said Nick Nemec, a South Dakota farmer who is part of an advocacy group working with the union.
The Storm Lake plant slaughters about 17,250 pigs a day when it is running at full capacity, according to industry data. That accounted for about 3.5% of US production before the pandemic.
Reuters contributed to this report.