Sofina Foods Inc. confirms positive tests for COVID-19 at two facilities

MARKHAM – Sofina Foods Inc. confirmed on May 8 one case of COVID-19 in two facilities in the province: one case at one of its further processing facilities in Mississauga and the other at the company’s pork facility in Burlington. The two incidents are unrelated.

According to a company statement, the employees are self-isolating at home. The company’s COVID-19 response protocol was deployed to investigate the incidents and mitigate any risks to other employees.

“In addition to the required PPE when in production areas, masks or face shields are now mandatory in production areas at these two sites,” said Daniele Dufour, senior director, communications, at Sofina Foods Inc, in a prepared statement. “We have a comprehensive manual and protocols in place for such situations and the teams were prepared. This allowed us to quickly assess risks, alert proper stakeholders and identify any action needed in addition to the proactive measures already in place.”

Any employee at each facility who may have been in close contact with the diagnosed employees was asked to self-isolate at home and monitor their health as a cautionary step. The plants are fully operational.

All Sofina Foods sites have deployed a number of measures to prevent the spread of the virus and maintain their ability to produce, according to a statement. They include temperature checks, ongoing sanitation of common areas and offices, staggered breaks, physical distancing in common areas, face shields, Plexiglas separations on the production line, at handwashing stations or in lunch rooms.

In addition, the plants had redirected the flow of movement to create a single point of entry and a single exit point at each site.

The two incidents were reviewed with the Public Health Authorities who confirmed they were isolated incidents.