London, UK: Smaller food delivery firms say they still do not know whether they qualify for the new Covid test scheme to prevent their workers having to self-isolate.
Daily testing for certain critical sectors in England was launched on Monday after several sectors warned of staffing shortages caused by 10-day isolations.
But several smaller food producers have reported there is a lack of information from government about their eligibility for the scheme.
On Monday, the government said organisations were being contacted by NHS Test and Trace so they could mobilise sites this week to test up to 10,000 food service staff.
A government spokesperson said over 500 priority test sites have been identified across supermarket and wholesale distribution centres, large manufacturing sites and processing plants. The spokesperson added that businesses are now receiving tests to start testing.
Shane Brennan, chief executive of the Cold Chain Federation, said the scheme was “very limited.”
“We now know how to get into the exemption scheme but you have to jump through a lot of hoops and be able to set up a sophisticated testing operation at your site.”
“To do that with just three weeks before the isolation rules end feels like a very long way from exemptions that could have made a proper difference earlier on,” he said.
“The chief executive of the Federation of Wholesale Distributors, James Bielby, told the BBC the scheme was “not really an option” for some smaller businesses for whom supervised on-site testing was “not a practical solution.”
“It requires a commitment of staff and space which would be very onerous for them and will be a challenge for Cash and Carry depots for example,” he said.
Smaller wholesalers can apply for specific exemptions for fully-vaccinated individual members of staff in critical roles, but there might be a 24-hour delay in hearing back whether they can do so.
“The delay in giving them access to the scheme means more expense, more food wasted if it cannot be delivered, and more small businesses having to turn customers away,” Bielby said.
Sainsbury’s said on Tuesday that the daily contact Covid testing is now up and running at three of its depots. Morrisons said three of its largest depots will be included in the initial 15 priority testing sites.
Morrisons said it was in the process of contacting staff who have been double vaccinated and pinged to see if they would like to move to a daily testing regime, which is voluntary.
From 16 August, anyone in England who is fully vaccinated – and unvaccinated under-18s – will be able to take PCR tests which are sent to a laboratory to be checked – instead of self-isolating, if pinged.
Similar rules come into force in Scotland from 9 August – and in Wales from 7 August.
