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COVID-19 in meat plants: a survey framed within a Target Prevention Plan, in Italy
Giorgio Di Leone1, Luigi Bertinato2, Gianfranco Brambilla3
1Servizio Prevenzione e Sicurezza degli Ambienti di Lavoro (SPESAL), ASL Bari, Dipartimento di Prevenzione, Molfetta (Bari), Italy.
Background:
During the COVID-19 pandemic, several outbreaks have been recorded worldwide in industrial slaughterhouses and meat-processing plants. Competent Italian health authorities at regional and provincial levels agreed on a risk-oriented control plan.
Methods:
Advocacy actions were activated, targeting meat plant managers and related food business operators. A questionnaire focused on the inventoried risk factors from literature was developed and administered voluntarily to interested stakeholders. In addition, an outbreak questionnaire was proposed to the prevention department of local health units.
Results:
From 2021 to 2022, 333 advocacy and 24 outbreak questionnaires on 4,765 inventoried plants were collected. The lack of awareness in updating the Risk Assessment Document for COVID-19, non-instrumental body temperature checks at the entrance, working force from different subcontractors, poor hygiene in shared places, and insufficient ventilation were the main critical points recorded.
Conclusions:
Results provide a post hoc review with an eye toward future zoonotic pandemics.
