730 people test positive for COVID-19 at Germany's largest meat factory

At least 730 people at the Toennies Group meatpacking plant in Germany's Rheda-Wiedenbrueck tested positive for COVID-19 as of Thursday, local media reported citing Germany's agriculture minister.

"Hundreds of infections in one plant. These conditions aren't tenable," Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner said in a statement. She added it was right for officials in North Rhine-Westphalia state, where the plant is located, to have launched a probe into the source of the infections.

Following a series of earlier coronavirus clusters at abattoirs, the German government pledged to crack down on the practice of using subcontractors, who often hire migrant workers and house them in cramped accommodations. But some lawmakers have warned of the risk that jobs might move abroad.