Impact of fire at Quinn’s Meats devastates local farming industry

Last month’s occurrence astatine Quinn’s Meats successful Yarker has had a devastating effect connected nan farming manufacture successful nan region, forcing nutrient producers to activity caller venues for slaughtering their meat. At slightest 1 workplace has been forced to adjacent down entirely.

Once 1 of nan fewer abattoirs successful nan region, Quinn’s Meats is now thing much than a charred memory. Farms that relied connected its services person been near scrambling—or worse.

“It was a mates of really difficult days to determine what we wanted to do, but astatine nan extremity of it, who knows what nan early is bringing, right? It could beryllium six months, it could beryllium a year, it could beryllium 2 years,” said Shanna Stas of Thorpe Farms.

Thorpe Farms, a hobby workplace adjacent Odessa, was forced to unopen down altogether, trading disconnected their livestock isolated from for 2 goats.

Despite nan tragedy, nan owners of Quinn’s are wished to rebuild. They told Global News they’re exploring each imaginable avenue to resurrect nan business, including nan workplace astatine Joyceville Penitentiary, wherever an abattoir erstwhile operated.

“Well, it would decidedly help, you know, assuming that we could get successful and get each nan instrumentality in, we could fundamentally prime correct backmost up connected each of nan section processing that we were doing,” said Kara Enright of Quinn’s.

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However, immoderate specified statement mightiness beryllium a agelong shot. In an email to Global News, Correctional Services Canada stated, “CSC is still presently exploring options for early usage of nan building, truthful immoderate conversations/discussions would beryllium thing much than exploratory.”

The nonaccomplishment of Quinn’s highlights a bigger issue: nan decreasing number of licensed abattoirs successful Ontario. According to Thorpe’s, location were complete 300 crossed nan state a decade ago, but now location are conscionable complete 100, creating a bottleneck successful nan industry.

“I don’t spot thing changing successful nan foreseeable future. Again, location was nary thief from section aliases national governments successful bid to thief nan farmers successful nan region. And I conscionable could spot it continuing to get worse,” said Shanna Stas.

As for nan origin of nan blaze that destroyed Quinn’s, nan Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office is still investigating.