BARRIE -- Smouldering piles of twisted metal are all that remains of the main office and packaging facilities at ATV Farms in Holland landing.
The devastating fire erupted in the early morning hours of December 8th, 2019 and caused millions of dollars of damage to specialized packaging equipment.
The co-owner, Anthony Agresti, says 'the fire service, and all of the other emergency services were able to contain it as much as they could. Unfortunately, it's a complete loss on the packing end.'
ATV Farms is one of the largest packers of root vegetables in the province. Many of the local growers depend on them to pack and ship their crops to get them to market.
Another local packing company has come forward to collaborate with ATV to help pack the millions of pounds of food still in cold storage.
Agresti says, 'We are going to be working around the clock to make sure our employees our customers and the community doesn't miss a beat.'
Filling the void in the supply chain won't be easy. The company typically ships more than 100 truckloads of vegetables per week across Canada, the United States and the Caribbean.
Local farmer, Avia Eek of Eek Farms, says they are happy to see the community pulling together to get the job done.
'One person is not an island unto themselves. The fact that people are rallying around ATV Farms, it just speaks to the quality of people that we have in our community.'
OFM investigators on the scene have not commented on the possible cause of the fire.
