Last month Maple Leaf announced it will begin phasing down operations at its primary pork processing plant on Marion Street in Winnipeg early next month, with the final day of operation set for October 26, as it moves to concentrate primary processing in Brandon.

Manitoba Pork Marketing sales manager Bill Alford says the cooperative's Winnipeg assembly yard will continue to operate as producers adjust to the change.

Bill Alford-Manitoba Pork Marketing

We do plan to be open here until we can address the needs beyond the closure of the plant but we expect to be open here on Marion Street at the assembly yards for at least until next spring.

Again, it will allow for a much easier transition given we've got an existing facility so delivery patterns won't have to change necessarily overnight but we'll get a better feel in the next few months how many hogs will go straight to Brandon.

Producers have to decide whether to invest in a new stock trailer, perhaps, if they were going to haul all of their hogs themselves.

But, again to, given the cost of that they may prefer to have them assembled and have other truckers ship them for them.

Everybody will be just assessing what exactly works best for them and that's a big part of our job here is to identify producer's needs and get the hogs to a timely slaughter.

Alford says the Winnipeg Assembly yard will remain in operation until at least next spring and possibly until about this time next year.

He says, while the coop is in no hurry to close the yard, the long term viability of the facility is expected to be discussed during the organization's semi annual meeting in November.