The fire at a Waikato beef processing works at the weekend will cost the jobs of 160 meat workers but plant owner Silver Fern Farms said insurance should cover most of the interrupted business and rebuilding costs.
Silver Fern Farms (SFF) chairman Eoin Garden hinted yesterday the company would rebuild the Te Aroha beef plant, saying it "will require a plant in the area for the future".
Friday night's fire was believed to have been started by sparks from contractors' work tools on Friday afternoon, but the nest of the fire simmered before breaking out about 11.30pm that evening, destroying the slaughter area, boning room and chillers.
Mr Garden and his chief executive, Keith Cooper, met the 350 seasonal employees yesterday and told them SFF would pay their full weekly earnings for this week and the minimum wage through until Christmas.
In addition, 190 would be offered work at SFF's Pacific plant in Hastings on full pay along with an accommodation allowance.
But this meant 160 people would be without work this season.
A night shift would start work at the Pacific plant and capacity increased at SFF's Dargaville and Hawera plants, steps Mr Cooper said should meet the short-term needs of company suppliers, who provided about 100,000 animals a year.
SFF chief executive Mr Cooper said under seasonal contracts if there was no work the staff could have been laid off, but the company valued their skill and dedication and was also aware Christmas was looming.
Mr Cooper said business interruption insurance cover would "largely compensate any negative impact on the business".
He said while the cause of the fire was still to be confirmed, it was clear "there was no neglect by the company nor any SFF employees".
While SFF had indicated a hope to rebuild the Te Aroha plant, it was too early for such a decision to be made, Mr Cooper said.
