Covid 19 Omicron outbreak: Whanganui businesses gear up for close contact exemptions

Comvita Whanganui supervisor Robbie O'Brien takes a rapid antigen test (RAT), watched by health rep Zandro Flotildes. Photo / Bevan Conley

With Omicron case numbers skyrocketing, Whanganui businesses are registering for a scheme that lets staff keep working even if they are close contacts of an infected person.

The close contact exemption scheme is for businesses that provide essential services, such as food supply and health care. It will allow staff who are close contacts to keep working, provided a rapid antigen test (RAT) comes out negative each day and they have no symptoms.

Mike Cranstone intends to register his farm as a critical service and he thinks most farmers will register.

Cooper Coolpak manager Andrew Cooper said most kiwifruit growers will do the same.

Registering "took about five minutes", he said.

The scheme kicks in when New Zealand moves into Omicron Phase 2 - more than 1000 daily cases - from 11.59pm on Tuesday.

Comvita Apiaries was an early adopter, national head of safety Heather Johnston said. It has 235 staff across the North Island and bought RAT testing kits in mid-December.

All staff had to return a negative test before they went back to work on January 10.

The Whanganui branch has 14 staff working in five bubbles, supervisor Robbie O'Brien said.

That could mean taking extra vehicles to the same destination. People with symptoms were expected to stay at home, with no "pay disadvantage" to them.

The Whanganui branch is randomly testing half its workers every week. In Phase 2 it will test all of them every week.

Staff have been trained to test themselves. They'll be able to take a kit home and test before leaving for work.

Each test needs three pieces of equipment. A nasal swab is wiggled around for 15 seconds in each nostril, then immersed in a fluid. Then the fluid, including material from the nose, is placed in a depression on a plastic stick.

A mixture of fluid and nasal material is dripped onto substrate for the test. Photo / Bevan Conley

Within 20 minutes, but usually sooner, lines appear in the solution. Two lines mean Covid has been detected and the person will then have a PCR test.

Comvita Whanganui health rep Zandro Flotildes said the PCR was more intense than the RAT because in a PCR the swab went past the nasal passages and into the throat.

The RAT version was milder but not enjoyable, O'Brien said.

"It's not fun."

RATs are 80 per cent accurate, which leaves businesses with an element of risk. After each test Comvita staff photograph their result and relay it to head office, using an app on their phones.

Covid-19 had meant lots of adaptations to the honey business, Johnston said.

"The challenge is that it's just constantly changing. You have to keep your eye on the Government website."

Staff disinfect at private properties and carry an app that records all their work locations.

Workers who are in close contact with infected people and test negative are allowed to go to work, but not to other places.

Each RAT kit contains enough equipment for 25 tests. Each test costs $7 to $12.

There were plenty of RAT kits available to buy commercially, Johnston said. Under Phase 2 free kits will also be made available to eligible people at GP clinics, pharmacies and community testing centres.

Applications to register as a critical service are made on the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) website, and there's a self-assessment process for owners.

Comvita was confident it had testing ready for the onslaught of Omicron, Johnston said, and would happily advise others.