Search
Better Farming OntarioBetter PorkBetter Farming Prairies

Better Farming Ontario Featured Articles

Better Farming Ontario magazine is published 11 times per year. After each edition is published, we share featured articles online.


Vegetable plant back in business after fire

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

by SUSAN MANN

Southwestern Ontario vegetable processor Bonduelle Ontario Inc. is slated to reopen its Tecumseh production facility Wednesday, five days after fire destroyed an adjacent warehouse and caused $40 to $50 million in damage.

Tecumseh Mayor Gary McNamara says “the first shipment of 20,000 pounds of peas is coming in” Wednesday. On Tuesday there were 75 to 80 Bonduelle employees including several skilled tradespeople who have been in the plant since Sunday gearing up to resume production.
 
McNamara says he toured the plant Tuesday and on the “fire side it looked like a war zone.” But on the production side in one area the wall is scorched and part of the freezer building is down while on the other side where the freezer tunnels are located there are no signs of damage. He credits a fire door and firefighters using three aerial trucks to pour water on the production building with saving the facility. “It was a defensive fire line they (the firefighters) put forward and saved the plant. Thank goodness for the firefighters.”

The cause is electrical, he says. “We were able to see one area, a small electrical room, and you could see where it’s kind of like the epicentre. It was there where it started.”

Firefighters remained on the scene for three days from the time the fire started at 2 a.m. Friday until they returned the facility to Bonduelle at midnight Sunday. Firefighters from Tecumseh,  three stations from Windsor, the Town of Lakeshore, Amherstburg and a truck from Kingsville were called in to fight the blaze.

On average about 60 firefighters were on the scene fighting the blaze at any given time, he says, adding that at the fire’s height there were 100 firefighters at the facility. There were no injuries to firefighters, workers or bystanders. There were 75 workers in the plant when the fire broke out but they were all evacuated safely, he says.

“The fire couldn’t have happened at a worst time of the year,” McNamara says, adding this was the most severe fire the town has seen since 1973 when that same plant, which was owned by Green Giant at the time, caught on fire. The Bonduelle vegetable processing plant is one of the town’s biggest employers and contributes $40 million a year to the community.

The Tecumseh plant produces nearly 30,000 tonnes of frozen goods and 20,000 tonnes of canned goods mostly for its customer Green Giant, the company says in a July 18 press release. Bonduelle is the exclusive Canadian supplier to General Mills’ Green Giant brand. The facility also has packing and shipping facilities. The plant normally processes carrots, green and wax beans, green peas and sweet corn.

McNamara says 95 per cent of the processed vegetables consumed in Canada “come out of that plant. This is the home of Green Giant.”

He adds that the plant will be in shape to process sweet corn, which is due to begin being harvested in two weeks while green beans are being processed at Bonduelle’s plants in Ingersoll and New York.

The Tecumseh plant employs 150 permanent and 700 seasonal workers. A total of 110 farmers supply the Tecumseh plant with vegetables they grow on 17,297 acres, according to the release. Bonduelle owns three plants in Ontario – Tecumseh, Ingersoll and Strathroy.

All of the Bonduelle Group’s plants are insured for property damage and production losses “which should limit the impact of this incident,” the release says.

McNamara says the company plans to rebuild the destroyed warehouse.

Bonduelle officials couldn’t be reached for comment. BF

Current Issue

June/July 2025

Better Farming Magazine

Farms.com Breaking News

Ontario Tender Fruit Season off to a Strong Start

Monday, July 14, 2025

Ontario's 2025 tender fruit and table grape season is off to a promising start reports the Ontario Tender Fruit and Fresh Grape Growers. While the weather may be too hot for some farmers, it has has been ideal for producing a sweet and juicy crop. A cooler-than-usual spring delayed the... Read this article online

Ontario farmers get boost for energy upgrades

Friday, July 11, 2025

The governments of Canada and Ontario are investing up to $3 million in the third round of the Agricultural Stewardship Initiative (ASI). This funding will help farmers improve the energy efficiency of their operations and support the long-term sustainability of the agriculture... Read this article online

Swede midge and cabbageworm found in Ontario canola

Thursday, July 10, 2025

As reported on the OMAFA website fieldcropnews.com, Ontario canola crops are at various growth stages, ranging from seedling to full bloom depending on planting time and region. Winter canola is now fully podded, and harvest is expected to begin soon in Essex and other southern... Read this article online

BF logo

It's farming. And it's better.

 

a Farms.com Company

Subscriptions

Subscriber inquiries, change of address, or USA and international orders, please email: subscriptions@betterfarming.com or call 888-248-4893 x 281.


Article Ideas & Media Releases

Have a story idea or media release? If you want coverage of an ag issue, trend, or company news, please email us.

Follow us on Social Media

 

Sign up to a Farms.com Newsletter

 

DisclaimerPrivacy Policy2025 ©AgMedia Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Back To Top