A Texas meat processing plant announced it will begin testing all its employees for COVID-19 on Saturday.
KRIS 6 News in Corpus Christi reported earlier in the week that seven of STX Beef's employees have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
The plant has about 400 employees.
Six remain in the hospital, according to KRIS.
A shutdown is not an option for the company.
In a statement released Friday, it said because they are considered an essential business, they are obligated to remain open.
The company said numerous safety measures have been put in place, and it will operate under high safety standards while remaining open to limit disruptions in the food supply.
Employee testing will be done over the next few days.