Abattoirs Victoria: Workforce restrictions could be relaxed

Premier Daniel Andrews has said a “commonsense” approach may be needed for abattoir restrictions as demand heats up — if processing plants can get coronavirus case numbers down.

Workforce restrictions could be eased in Victorian abattoirs.

WORKFORCE restrictions at Victorian abattoirs could be relaxed next month, if extra production is needed come spring.

Premier Daniel Andrews today said he was prepared to consider reducing restrictions on meat processors next month to keep up with demand, particularly as the traditional lambing season arrives – but only if coronavirus cases linked to the sector were under control.

“It’s just commonsense and the fact September is very different to August,” Mr Andrews said.

“We will always look to try and do whatever is the most practical thing, while also trying to keep the numbers (of coronavirus cases) down.”

More than 740 cases have been linked to 14 meat processing plants across the state since July 1.

The Government last week ordered beef, pork and lamb processors to reduce their workforces by 33 per cent, in a bid to reduce the spread. Chicken processors are down by 20 per cent, reflecting the different production demands of poultry processing.

Many red meat processors were already operating well below capacity, due to below-average slaughter rates for both cattle and sheep so far this season because of restocking across Australia’s east coast.

However, industry has warned spring lamb sales and processing could be under threat, with the six-week restrictions running into the start of the traditional spring flush.

Mr Andrews said the situation with processing plants would be monitored closely, including case numbers and transmission rates in the sector.

“We’re always happy to look on a case-by-case basis, provided it doesn’t undermine the overall mission, which is to get the number of people working in these high-risk settings down to a lower level,” he said.

“I think particularly from a lamb point of view, or indeed across the board, once we get deep into September it’s a different set of circumstances and hopefully by then we’ve seen cases come down, so we’ve got some room to move then.”