Asian Tech Press (Dec 22) -- Apple supplier Foxconn is shutting down its Chennai factory in southern India for a week after a food poisoning outbreak sparked protests by employees, according to media reports, with sources familiar with the matter.

According to local reports, last Wednesday, a massive food poisoning outbreak at Foxconn's Chennai plant saw 256 workers treated in outpatient clinics and 159 others hospitalized. As of Saturday, 155 hospitalized patients were discharged. The incident sparked massive protests by factory workers and their families, who demonstrated on the highway connecting Chennai and Bangalore on Friday night and Saturday, accusing the Foxconn plant of serving spoiled food. Nearly 70 women and 22 men were subsequently detained.

It was not immediately clear if the food poisoning or protests affected iPhone production activities at the plant. The plant produces and assembles the iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 and their electronic components for Apple and is scheduled to produce the latest version of its flagship phone, the iPhone 13, starting next February.