FINCH— The Hakvoort family in Finch will be unveiling their new hog barn on June 15 and are excited to have it finished. The new barn is a result of a fire that the old one incurred in October of 2011.
The new building is similar to the old one in size at 26,500 square feet. The barn is made up of three attached buildings that will house the 2650 to 2700 hogs in their herd. Devin Hakvoort says that the building process went very smoothly. "All of the structural components are finished and all that is left is to install the equipment. The building went really well, we had predicted 10 weeks and that’s how long it took."
While many things within the barn are similar Hakvoort emphasizes that they new facility is laid out much nicer.
Even with the similarities, there are a few new features. There is an underground manure storage, an automated feed system that uses a blower pipe system to send feed to bins and automated ventilation.
The family operates a farrow to finish operation that receives gilts that are mature enough to breed. They breed them and then they raise them until they are 200-240lbs before sending them to slaughter. Their herd is set to move into the new facility the first week of July.
Since there are not a lot of hog equipment dealers in Eastern Ontario, the Hakvoorts needed to reach into Quebec for the project. They made contact with a company called Godro, who referred them to D.F. Coffrages. "They did the job cheaper and quicker than any other company could offer," explained Hakvoort.
Before the fire, the family had a contract with Lavergne Western Beef that the company has honored for when Hog Haven can resume their operations. In the meantime the family took over another operation, until they can resume shipping at their main location.
The June 15 open house will be located at Hog Haven Farms, 2974 Goldfield Rd. in Finch, from X to X.
Enterprise
June, 2012
Vol. 36, No. 6
ENTERPRISE
