Greenhouse growers stress importance of voluntary COVID-19 testing for workers

WINDSOR, ONT. -- As the number of agriculture workers testing positive for COVID-19 grows rapidly in Windsor-Essex, the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) supports increased access to testing for all agri-food employees.

Over the past two days, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit reports an additional 72 positive COVID-19 cases in the agri-food community, which now makes up for more than one-fifth of all positive cases in the region.

The health unit is reporting 38 new cases of COVID-19 in Windsor-Essex on Wednesday, all in the agri-farm sector.

Over the past week, two workers, a 31-year-old and a 24-year-old, died after testing positive with the novel coronavirus.

“OGVG were saddened to learn of the death of Rogelio Munoz Santos over the weekend. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the deceased,” reads a statement from the OGVG. “OGVG supports the government taking all steps to further understand what lead to this tragedy and what system or operational changes could have avoided this outcome.”

“The development of a voluntary strategic on-farm testing protocol that provides individual assurances, supports public health objectives, and identifies potential operational failures will provide maximum benefit to all involved,” continues the statement.

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit started remote testing at facilities last week and this week launched a targeted effort with Erie Shores HealthCare with a mass-testing facility at the Nature Fresh Farms Recreation Centre in Leamington.

The facility has the capacity to test up to 500 people each day with a supply to test all 9,000 temporary foreign workers across the county over the next two weeks. The centre is equipped with translators and has signs and literature in English and Spanish.

Workers, through their workplaces, are coming by the bus-load for the voluntary testing.

David Musyj, the CEO of Windsor Regional Hospital, says the uptake and feedback from Tuesday was positive, with employees and employers calling the process “safe and efficient.”

“We are hopeful and confident more employers will bring their employees to the assessment centre to protect their employees and our community. We saw 160 on day one and getting more and more calls for employers to arrange attendance of their employees for this assessment,” Musyj says.

The OGVG is urging all members to undertake all steps to protect their workforces.

“We urge growers, health agencies and government at large to work together to develop culturally appropriate communication materials, in a variety of languages, that help to quell these fears and dispel myths associated with testing and positive outcomes. This is especially important for vulnerable populations,” the OGVG says.

“As we move into the next phase of voluntary testing, it is critical we plan for all scenarios to ensure Ontario’s food supply is protected and farm-level disruptions do not lead to wide-scale crop losses,” say OGVG reps. “This will require a coordinated regional response plan that ensures local infrastructure and services are able to respond to all potential outcomes.”