Covid-19 ‘Outbreak’ At Berwick Poultry Plant Prompts Shutdown

HALIFAX — The provincial government is ordering Eden Valley Poultry to shut down for two weeks amid what Premier Stephen McNeil calls an “outbreak” of Covid-19 at the plant.

Four cases of the disease have been detected at the Berwick plant in the past two days and the province has ordered it to temporarily close as it undertakes a mass testing program of every plant employee.

Eden Valley is the only federally licensed chicken plant in Nova Scotia. It employs about 450 people.

Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health, says four Covid-19 cases have already been confirmed at the plant. He says the virus appears to have arrived after two employees had contact with people who travelled outside Nova Scotia.

The province is waiting on results from 300 more Covid-19 tests at the plant, but McNeil says there is “no evidence of community spread” yet.

However, Strang said the results from those remaining tests are expected today and that “it’s not impossible that we might get additional positives.”

McNeil today thanked plant management for its cooperation with public health officials throughout the process and said the decision to shut the plant was not an easy one.

“It’s not easy to shut down any company and this chicken plant is a large employer… but we have to do what we have to do to protect employees and the community,” McNeil said.

Strang echoed McNeil, saying temporarily closing the plant was the right thing to do given the circumstances.

“The decision we had in front of us was keeping the plant going but in all likelihood have more cases pop up and have them and their contacts then isolate, or take the precautionary approach and close the plant now and have everybody at home isolating and tested,” Strang said.

“As we’ve always been doing with Covid-19, our approach is to take the precautionary approach [and] always err on the side of caution, doing what’s necessary to stay out in front of this virus.”

“This is a chance for us to really wrap our arms around this plant, have all of them recognize the seriousness of this… help make sure they protect their family and community, and allow them to get back to work as quickly as possible without impacting them in the new year,” McNeil added.

Although there is no evidence yet of community spread of Covid-19 in the Annapolis Valley, the provincial government is ramping up testing in the region.

The government will open a primary assessment center in Berwick and send one of its mobile testing units there. Strang said he is also looking into how rapid testing can be used there.

The government will also give every Eden Valley employee a second test in a week’s time.

Strang called the outbreak at Eden Valley “a stark reminder that we’re not through this [pandemic] yet and things can change very quickly.”