Outbreak in spite of Germany’s overall low coronavirus incidence raises concerns over prevalence in meat factories
After at least three meat-processing factories in the UK – in Anglesey, Wrexham and Cleckheaton – have seen major coronavirus outbreaks, a plant in Germany has seen a huge outbreak, with more than a thousand workers at the same facility testing positive for the virus, in spite of low overall incidence of the virus in that country:
The news raises concerns about how the relative prevalance of transmission specifically linked to meat processing.
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Stop eating.meat?
Those places are pretty cold,and I suspect that is why they become centres of infection,it is like winter temperature.
Other facilities are also cold, like food warehouses – I used to visit a place with a huge walk-around chiller – so meat processing probably wouldn’t be vulnerable just on temperature, but if this is temperature-related we’d better hope for a mild winter.
Not sure how any kind of food production or distribution can be subject to lockdown.
Meat processing plants with large numbers of workers implies manual processing rather than machine. Either way it’s a high speed process with animal parts flying around – logically there must be blood and other particles in the air.
CV19 has already crossed species more than once – from bat (?) to human and (presumed) from human to mink in fur farms. Mink are of the same family as ferrets, stoats, weasels and martens – they and rats are probably capable of finding ways into meat processing plants to feed.
According to the chief medical officer of the UK, many of those who have the Corona virus will not even realise they have it, a very small number will have very mild symptoms, a minute fraction will have more serious symptoms requiring hospitalization.
Of these outbreaks what percentage of the workers have it, what percentage of the workers fall broadly into the categories as outlined by the chief medical officer and over what time duration has the virus been incubating within the affected people. For example, 1-6 days, 1 week-3 weeks, 1 month etc.
Are there any official medical reports relating to these outbreaks?
Covid 19 can survive frozen for more than 2 years. Does frozen meat figure, and from where, in these processing plants in the UK and Germany?
” major coronavirus outbreaks”
By definition these aren’t ‘major’ – and there is no distinction made between the *presence* of a virus and *illness from*. In addition, the workers in such a plant will, by definition, have a minute level of risk.
Quite simply – seeks and ye shall find.
I wonder how many *other* circulating viruses would be found in a more analytic trawl in order to put this in perspective.
CEBM covered this issue weeks ago. It’s not new :
https://www.cebm.net/covid-19/what-explains-the-high-rate-of-sars-cov-2-transmission-in-meat-and-poultry-facilities-2/
Their provisional overview highlighted the following :
“Question: What explains the high rate of Sars-CoV-2 transmission in meat and poultry facilities?
Brief answer:
1. The working environment in these facilities is favourable to SARS-CoV-2 persistence (metallic surfaces, low temperatures and relative humidity). (as noted by john thatcher)
2.The working environment may help SARS-CoV-2 transmission (crowded working places, shared transportation, production of aerosols, droplets, fomites).
4. A vulnerable, low-paid workforce may be under pressure to keep working despite having symptoms of COVID-19.”
Certainly, atypical and not significant or indicative in general terms.
The very important point which appears to be missing in all the sensational outbreaks is just how reliable are the tests for Covid-19 because many eminent virologists, doctors, Professors and independent medical research establishments question, just how reliable are the tests.
“In this study, we collected a total of 610 hospitalized patients from Wuhan between February 2, 2020, and February 17, 2020. We reported a potentially high false negative rate of real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing for SARS-CoV-2 in the 610 hospitalized patients clinically diagnosed with COVID-19 during the 2019 outbreak. We also found that the RT-PCR results from several tests at different points were variable from the same patients during the course of diagnosis and treatment of these patients. Our results indicate that in addition to the emphasis on RT-PCR testing, clinical indicators such as computed tomography images should also be used not only for diagnosis and treatment but also for isolation, recovery/discharge, and transferring for hospitalized patients clinically diagnosed with COVID-19 during the current epidemic. These results suggested the urgent needs for the standard of procedures of sampling from different anatomic sites, sample transportation, optimization of RT-PCR, serology diagnosis/screening for SARS-CoV-2 infection, and distinct diagnosis from other respiratory diseases such as fluenza infections as well.”
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32219885/
Dr Wolfgang Wodrag explains the flaws in the Covid-19 tests.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p_AyuhbnPOI
One question – if he and the film-maker don’t believe there’s any danger why aren’t they face to face?
OK, “They can’t travel” you say – is there not another doctor in the film-maker’s country who’d fill in for him – or one film-maker in the doctor’s country who would?
I mean, since they’re totally convinced CV’s a fairy story an’all?
Hmm, you haven’t being paying attention again. He said that the test for Corona-19 is very flawed, he also stated that the tests have not been rigorously tested. In addition, the virologists in the first article stated a similar point. However, as usual you can offer no evidence to counter what they have stated. If you have any, let’s see it instead of inane, vacuous, daily Flail tactics.
You’re the one droning on about how the vacuous conspiracy theory you’ve latched onto like a retarded leech – which is believed by about 0.01% of the world’s least-honoured scientists – should be believed over the consensus of the other 99.99%. Oh, and all the doctors and all the politicians except the proven imbeciles Trunt and Bolsonaro.
That IS evidence Bubber, you moron.
On the specific point of the tests – OF COURSE they’re flawed – I wrote about the false negatives WEEKS ago – and the utter incompetence of the Tories’ implementation of their so-called ‘system’.
90 cases in a meat production plant in Anglesey now, workers who apparently flew in from abroad to work there is the news up there! Strange this is suddenly happening all over the world now after the virus being “alive” for almost 6 months???
On the 6 month delay – yes, it does seem anomalous.
One would expect that such indoor food production operations, being virtually exempt from lockdown, would have suffered early and ongoing outbreaks. Maybe they did and they weren’t detected.
If it turns out to be another crossing of the species barrier, one that contaminates the food chain, that would be a far more difficult issue to address than human-to-human transmission that can be ameliorated with more effective PPE.
Oh dear in the land of maybes or maybe it’s time you clocked off you clown !
Oh dear, unable to offer any counter evidence, unable to offer any proof and quoting unsubstantiated figures such as ” 0.01%” or “0.99%,” all you can do is support your diatribe is with puerile cliches. Now off you pop and try and find some evidence rather silly Billy rants!
Mc Bullshit, you said ” there is evidence ” you haven’t produced any. Time to stop working late shifts for you me lad!
McBullshit, at it again I see. On the one hand you decry leading virologists points and proof about the unreliability of the Covid-19 tests and on the other hand you said ” I wrote about .. weeks ago “. Can’t keep up with your own bullshit!