BY NANCY KELLY
Kings County Advertiser/Register
Berwick is reeling after news the Larsen meat processing facility, owned by Maple Leaf Foods Inc., will close its doors- putting close to 300 people out of work.
The Nov. 17 announcement the plant will close in April 2011 seemed to come as no surprise to employees who were called to a meeting with Maple Leaf officials at the Berwick Legion.
Maple Leaf vice president Rick Young said the closure decision was made in response to a highly competitive global market that demands Maple Leaf “increase productivity while reducing the costs of manufacturing.”
The company will gradually wind down operations at the Berwick plant starting in Feb. 2011. Young would not comment on severance details for the 280 employees on site, but indicated the packages would “go beyond provincial labour requirements” and would include “personal counseling and ongoing placement services and workshops.” Displaced employees will also be encouraged to seek employment at other Maple Leaf-owned facilities.
Production of the Berwick plant’s line of bacon, processed meat, ham and wieners will shift to Maple Leaf-owned Hub Meats in Moncton and two of the company’s Ontario-based process facilities.
The Larsen facility has been a fixture in Berwick since it opened in 1939. Maple Leaf purchased the plant and product brand from the Larsen family in 2000; it acquired Hub Meats at the same time. At the time, the two plants processed most of the pork and beef produced in Nova Scotia.
In March 2010, the company announced the closure of Larsen’s abattoir and started bringing in production materials from other regions of Canada. Young says the company will continue to produce products under the Larsen brand and meet its ongoing customer requirements to supply the Atlantic Canada market.
Mayor John Prall, who was called to a meeting at the plant after Maple Leaf officials met with employees, appeared shaken by the news. He acknowledged downsizing at the plant had been on the horizon for some time, but said he was unprepared for the news of a complete closure.
“People have relied on Larsen and it has been an important part of our town for a very long time.”
Prall recalled the closure of the Avon Foods plant in 2002: “Unfortunately we have been through this before, and we know what is at stake. This will be a huge hit to our town.”
