Sun-Brite Foods Inc. in Ruthven pled guilty Monday and has been fined $70,000 after a worker lost part of a foot in an industrial accident 17 months ago.

On Sept. 5, 2013, a seasonal farm worker from Mexico was cleaning the area around a tomato peeling machine when his foot slipped into a trough and became caught in the auger at the company's food processing facility at 1532 County Road 34.

The worker suffered serious injuries to the foot, which had to be partially amputated.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that while steel mesh guards were affixed over the waste troughs of other machines, no guard had yet been installed on the newest machine and the auger was fully exposed.

In addition to the $70,000 fine, the court also imposed a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge.