Coronavirus tests for staff at Peter's Food Service in Bedwas

As previously reported, earlier this month four employees - out of 613 - at Peter's Food Service, in Bedwas, tested positive for coronavirus and it was 'reasonably believed' to have been caused by community-based transmission.

Peter's Food Service have confirmed that as soon as a staff member notifies them of a positive test result they are excluded from the site and local authorities are contacted.

A spokesman for Peter’s Food Service in Bedwas said: "To ensure that 'Track and Trace' can be alerted and follow-up any direct contacts, we outline where the positive contact has worked, the nature of their work, and the precautions we have taken to ensure that we limit any further transmission.

"In addition, any colleague, who is defined as a 'direct contact' of a colleague who has unfortunately tested positive, is also immediately excluded from site."

Six of these direct contacts, who were excluded from the Bedwas site, have subsequently tested positive for coronavirus and the Bedwas unit have been informed of nine more cases - they believe seven of these are unrelated to any other site case.

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Due to the rise in positive cases a mobile testing unit was set-up at Peter's Food Service in Bedwas yesterday morning and testing of all staff members continues today.

The spokesman added: "Our understanding is that the rationale for conducting a 100 per cent testing of colleagues is the increased number of Covid-19 test results reported in recent days.

"The authority would like to understand if there is the potential for onward transmission within the factory environment and determine if Peter’s are likely to see a greater number of cases within the coming week.

"Peter’s has been told that the decision is not a reflection on the controls in place in the factory as these have been reviewed and are very good and there has been minimal positive Covid-19 or asymptomatic cases.

"At this stage the authority still believes the transmission is through the community, however, they need to understand the bigger picture to identify if this is the start of onward transmission within the factory environment."

The Bedwas factory has has coronavirus measures in place for seven months, including:

• Social distancing in place.
• Perspex screens and PPE for employees in packing areas.
• Common areas being cleaned and sanitised throughout the day.
• Limited canteen seating and screens in place.
• Staggered shifts.
• Weekly coronavirus reviews with colleagues and Trade Union representatives.
• Daily practice checks and departmental audits.
• All employees must confirm they are symptom free before each shift; symptomatic staff members are immediately excluded from the site.