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Health in China
China

Coronavirus: food-related outbreaks raise flags about supply security

  • In Europe, South America and the US, meat processing plants have been hotspots for the spread of the virus
  • Many workers at meatpacking plants and slaughterhouses in the US and China are from marginalised populations, academic says

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The coronavirus has raised questions about global food security. Photo: Xinhua
Simone McCarthy
Beijing’s latest coronavirus outbreak shows the threat the pathogen poses to food supply after it forced the closure of the city’s largest wholesale market for meat, fish, fruit and vegetables.
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The incident at Xinfadi, which provides Beijing’s 20 million-plus people with more than 80 per cent of their farm produce, serving thousands of customers a day, is one of several to hit food supply chains around the world. It also drew comparisons with the initial outbreak, which began at a food market in Wuhan.

Beijing has deployed emergency reserve food supplies and set up temporary markets to stave off shortages, state media reported. As of Monday, more than 230 people in the city had been infected, including a number of market workers.

In Europe, South America and the United States, meat processing plants have been hotspots for the spread of the virus, infecting thousands of workers and causing food security jitters.

Last week, a German meatpacking plant closed after nearly two-thirds of its more than 1,000 employees were found to be infected, while a poultry plant in Wales was closed after more than 50 workers fell ill. In the US, dozens of deaths have been linked to outbreaks at meat plants in recent months, according to Reuters.

As the pandemic infection rate shows no sign of slowing, experts say protecting workers and the global food supply requires an urgent broad approach to ensure workers’ rights and health are protected, facilities are sanitary and government support is in place.

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