Odour won’t be an issue at Balzac beef plant

Opponents haven’t done their homework, writes Rich Vesta

I have great news for the Alberta beef industry — news that brings with it hundreds of millions of dollars annually in diversified economic activity that is vital to the Alberta economy and hundreds of new jobs in the Calgary area.

After more than 18 months of arduous review and exacting due diligence, Rocky View County council approved a development permit on Sept. 15 that will allow Harmony Beef in Balzac to erect a small, 6,400-square-foot building to house our industry-leading water recycling facility.

Some may be aware that Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi has written to Rocky View County, and several Alberta government leaders, including the Municipal Affairs minister and Premier Rachel Notley, with concerns about the potential of odour issues. Extensive research shows this concern is without scientific foundation.

To our knowledge, no one from Calgary city council was in attendance at Rocky View council when the county’s third-party odour expert was questioned diligently and at length about his findings that the Harmony Beef plant will not create problems for residents located in the city. The expert hired by the county was very clear there will be no issues of any significance even a kilometre from the facility.

The expert also explained that the negative report prepared on behalf of a Calgary developer by a Minnesota consultant was not valid because it used a model that did not utilize all of the facts and appropriate data, therefore leading to inaccurate conclusions. The consultant never came to our facility and only agreed to visit the plant with legal counsel present, which we found offensive.

The new 6,400-square-foot building we are adding is dwarfed in comparison to the existing 150,000-square-foot facility we are currently renovating and reopening.

Our plant is a fantastic environmental story in a province looking to showcase environmental excellence that is global in scale. The recycling process we are introducing reduces new water use by more than 90 per cent compared to traditional beef processing plants, even though process water usage will remain at industry standard levels.

The approval opens the door for us to create about 300 new jobs, and judging from the applications received, a large number of the people wanting to work for us live within a few kilometres of the plant in northeast Calgary. These applications are coming in months before we open an industry-leading facility during a time of low oil prices, when new jobs are precious.

And we intend to provide Canada access to new global markets for premium Alberta beef. Although we are small compared to other beef processors — only about 800 head a day, compared to 4,000 to 5,000 at other regional plants — we are the largest facility in Canada certifiable for export to the European Union.

We also hired the foremost agriculture odour expert in Canada to study the plant. The report by our expert was compiled over several months and is the only one that involved site visits, full engagement with owners, operators and their consultants, as well as infield odour measurements. No one else had a full factual understanding of plant operations. Our expert noted no issues of concern.

Harmony Beef has spent more than $25 million improving the efficiency, cleanliness of operations, and safety of the plant.

Additionally, it is important to note, that there were no reported odour incidents during the facility’s previous operation as Rancher’s Beef. We will implement thorough measures before operations commence to ensure that Harmony Beef will be the first to police any odour issues if, in fact, any exist.

You have my personal assurance that in the very unlikely event an incident occurs, we will deal with it quickly, efficiently, openly and in an effective manner.

I again extend an open invitation to Mayor Naheed Nenshi to have a tour of the progressive actions we are taking. I believe he will be impressed with our commitment to excellence, community and environmental stewardship.

The approval opens the door for us to create about 300 new jobs

Rich Vesta is president and chief executive officer of Harmony Beef.