Has the deathknell sounded?

As surely as icy winds ripped through Kings County, a definite chill rippled through our community last week.

It was as palpable as a heavy frost in the wake of the announcement that the Maple Leaf poultry processing plant in Canard would close its doors at the end of April. About 380 people will lose their jobs then and a payroll worth millions of dollars will no longer be at play in this economy. Neither will the $55-million farm-gate ascribed to the province’s poultry production facilities, the bulk of which are concentrated in Kings County.

Think about that for a second. First, nearly 400 people will no longer be employed locally. The human consequence of something like that is huge and damn near incalculable.

These people aren’t just numbers. They’re men and women with families and commitments who had no idea that their livelihoods would disappear as quickly as the time it takes to tack a poster on a corkboard inviting them to a staff meeting.

Union rep Blair Benjamin told this newspaper that many thought the meeting would be to outline a plant upgrade because employees knew that the 50-year-old facility could use a facelift.

But Maple Leaf decided that the $40 million required to retool the plant just wasn’t worth it, especially when plants elsewhere could take on the load. Even worse, whole families are employed at the Canard plant and once April ends, the cupboard as far as income is concerned is suddenly bare.

That would scare the life out of me. Sure, there’s talk of severance packages, but there’s no fiscal sustainability in something like that. Sooner or later, the cash runs out and if you don’t have a job by then, what do you do?

You hear so much about brain drain to the U.S. and Alberta, but small wonder, right? If the jobs aren’t here and people have to eat, you load up the truck and light out for greener pastures.

So the Canard closure is one thing. Then there are pork producers locally who have been pushed so far as to suggest they may have to destroy whole herds simply because they don’t have the money to buy feed for them.

They asked the government for $6 million to float the boat until mid-year, but the Tories don’t seem to have the political will to step up and do the right thing. It’s surprising, considering the hog industry has farm-gate receipts of $35 million with a spin-off of $100 million.

You would think by comparison that six million bucks would be a drop in the bucket, but politicians always seem to have another agenda and, to my mind, agriculture isn’t terribly high on the list.

Couple these circumstances with the quiet closure last month of an egg grading facility in Port Williams (20-25 jobs lost), the possible closure of the Larsen’s plant in Berwick and that chill I spoke of earlier drills right to the bone.

The basis of our economy is under attack and we should all fear its continued erosion. Kings County has always been promoted as a great place to live and those of us lucky enough to be here would have no argument with that.

But if we allow the linchpin of economic stability – the agriculture industry – to be cannibalized without public outcry, we’re the authors of our own misfortune. If you value the metaphoric fruits of the industry and appreciate those who work so hard to bring it to market, get involved.

As far as I can see, all sectors are threatened and citizens here must speak with one voice to those in Halifax and Ottawa who represent our interests: protect our way of life, or else.