Closure of Olymel plant due to outbreak means backlog for Alberta pork producers

The closure of the Olymel pork processing plant due to an outbreak of COVID-19 has left hog farmers scrambling to find somewhere to take their animals. 

"I am very concerned. We are lucky we have a few weeks, but I know farmers, they have to ship next week," said Arnold van Ginkel, a pork producer who ships about 140 pigs from his farm in Leslieville to the Olymel plant every week. 

That's just a fraction of the plant's capacity. 

According to Alberta Pork, 40,000 to 50,000 pigs go through the Red Deer facility each week.

Executive Director Darcy Fitzgerald says even a two week closure will create a significant backlog.

"If we look at coming back by at least March 1st we'll probably be about 130,000 pigs backlogged," he said.

Farmers will be looking at options that include finding spare room and feed or shipping the animals to Manitoba or to the U.S. in order to avoid euthanizing them. 

Fitzgerald says that adds costs to an already struggling industry, with most producers not turning a profit since 2015. 

As of Tuesday, an outbreak at the Olymel Red Deer Food Processing Plant was linked to 343 cases, 200 of which were active. 

One death, 35-year-old Darwin Doloque, has been linked to the outbreak. 

Fitzgerald and van Ginkel both say Olymel should wait until it's safe to re-open. There's still no word on when that could happen.