China finds Covid-19 cluster in major chicken processing plant, East Asia

BEIJING (REUTERS) – China reported its first cluster of Covid-19 cases among workers in a meat-processing plant, raising fears among local consumers who have until now mainly worried about the safety of imported food. Ten confirmed cases were found in a factory which slaughters 50 million chickens a year in the north-eastern city of Harbin and is owned by Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand, one of the world’s top poultry producers. Another 28 workers at the plant and three family members were asymptomatic, officials told a news briefing on Thursday (Jan 21). While China repeatedly pointed to imported frozen meat and…