The Irish meat industry has said it is doing all it can to combat the coronavirus outbreaks in processing plants.
Meat Industry Ireland (MII) spoke out after the number of cases in meat factories jumped by 300 to 828 in the past week.
The sharp rise was described as “concerning” by deputy chief medical officer, Dr Ronan Glynn.
There are now 16 clusters – made up of two or more cases – across meat plants. The issue will be discussed at a meeting of National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) on Friday.
Most confirmed cases of the disease are now no longer in the community, with outbreaks in meat plants accounting for a large number of cases announced every day.
A spokesman for Meat Industry Ireland (MII) Cormac Healy said the plants will continue to work with the HSE and local control teams to stop the spread of Covid 19.
Mr Healy told RTE’s Morning Ireland: “This is a huge learning curve. I fully understand concerns at the unfortunate number of clusters.”
He added that where clusters have occurred the HSE has been engaged in “several of those facilities” and full site screenings have been carried out.
Mr Healy pointed out that of the 56 meat plants in the country working under approval from the Department of Agriculture, a significant number had zero cases.
He added: “The measures employed are working. Meat Industry Ireland introduced measures well before the government protocols. We put together our own based on knowledge of best practice."
Asked about the challenge of meat workers living together, Mr Healy said accommodation was shared across many industries.
He said that 80% of the workforce is made up of Irish and European workers, with just 20% on a permit scheme.
He said rules apply equally to everyone whether they share accommodation or not.
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