China Suspends Imports From Tyson Foods Plant Over COVID-19 Concerns

China has mad the decision to suspend poultry imports from a Tyson Foods plant in Arkansas over COVID-19 concerns.

In addition to the temporary suspension of imports from the plant, per an NPR report, China’s General Administration of Customs office has confirmed that any products that have already arrived in the region will be seized by authorities.

The suspension has been confirmed to be for the Berry Street facility in Springdale, Arkansas where 227 workers tested positive for the coronavirus earlier this month. Of those 227, 223 were asymptomatic.

In a statement over the weekend, a Tyson rep claimed the company’s “top priority” is the “health and safety” of its team members. In a previous statement shared earlier this month, the company addressed those aforementioned positive COVID-19 tests in Arkansas.

“The results across our Northwest Arkansas facilities, and the country more broadly, reflect how much is still unknown about this virus, which is why Tyson is committed to providing information to our local health officials and enhanced education to our team members,” Tom Brower, Senior VP of Health and Safety for Tyson Foods, said. “Through our inclusive approach to large-scale testing, we are finding that a very high level of team members who test positive do not show symptoms. Identifying asymptomatic cases helps the community, since other testing is often limited to people who feel unwell.”