US food and beverages giant PepsiCo has closed a food processing plant in Beijing due to a Covid-19 outbreak.

Reuters reported the decision was taken after “at least one employee” tested positive for coronavirus at the facility which produces Lay’s crisps.

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The news agency said PepsiCo China director of corporate affairs Fan Zhimin told a news conference yesterday (21 June) production at the factory in the Daxing district was halted as soon as coronavirus was confirmed amongst employees at the site on 15 June.

PepsiCo has not confirmed the exact number of positive Covid-19 cases at the facility but Reuters added a senior official for the Beijing disease control authority, Pang Xinghuo, told the same news conference eight people at the Daxing plant had tested positive.

Following the discovery of the virus amongst its workforce, PepsiCo conducted tests on all employees at the plant on 16 June and quarantined 480 employees on 20 June, even though they all tested negative for the virus, it told the news conference.

Reports in the Chinese media, unconfirmed by PepsiCo, suggested two of the eight employees affected has made purchases at the Xinfadi food market which has been implicated as the source of a new outbreak of the virus in the country’s capital.

just-food has asked PepsiCo for further information outside of US business hours.