GREEN BAY (NBC 26) -- The meat packing company Salm Partners announced in a media release that 35 of its employees have tested positive for coronavirus.
"Out of 346 tests, there were 17 new cases of COVID-19 discovered, or 5% of total tests," the company said in a statement. "The State of Wisconsin’s positive test percentage was 8.5% on April 28. With these new results, Salm Partners has had 35 partners test positive out of its 600 total partners (this employee number includes temporary workers)."
The company refers to all its employees as "partners". Salm said there has been no confirmed evidence that individuals contracted the virus in the workplace.
Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach was also quoted in the Salm Partners news release, saying the company, in cooperation with Brown County health, provided testing to their Brown County workforce on Friday.
“Since this is one of the first companywide tests in the state, this data will provide valuable insights to the Brown County Health Department,” said Keith Lindsey, CEO of Salm Partners. “Through this testing, we have further enhanced the leading COVID-19 defenses we have in place at Salm Partners.”
Salm Partners stresses that the test indicates if someone has the virus at a point in time. To continue to remain virus free, the company says all employees and community members should follow the CDC’s guidelines of social distancing, staying home when sick, washing surfaces frequently, not touching the face and wearing masks in public.
Salm Partners said employees who tested positive have been referred to health care professionals, and then quarantined. Testing results are confidential, Salm Partners said, and the company will not identify people who test positive.
