$20-million beef plant to open in Alberta

Alberta will soon have a new beef processing facility with the opening of Harmony Beef this fall near Balzac.

According to Globalmeatnews.com, the state-of-the-art plant will process approximately 125 cattle per day to begin with, increasing to 800 cattle per day once the facility is operating at full capacity. Roughly 125 local jobs will be created, with another 200 jobs created within three years.

The 75,000-sq.-ft. plant, formerly owned by Rancher’s Beef, will receive a $20-million renovation, making it the largest EU-approved cattle slaughtering facility in Canada.

Harmony Beef is owned by meat industry veteran Rich Vesta. In an interview with the Calgary Herald Vesta says the plant was scheduled to begin operations in January, however concerns about noise, odour and air quality raised by some residents and politicians in nearby Calgary have pushed the opening date to the fall.