Home FeaturedHighline Produce fined $115,000 after mushroom worker critically injured in Kingsville, Ont.

Highline Produce fined $115,000 after mushroom worker critically injured in Kingsville, Ont.

by Safety News Canada
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A Leamington-based mushroom producer has been fined $115,000 after a worker was critically injured at its Kingsville facility, Ontario’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development said.

The incident happened on July 20, 2023, while a worker was assigned to roll and sanitize grow nets using a Net Washer machine. The nets, used for harvesting mushrooms, had to be aligned properly on the rotating bar of the machine to avoid shifting or becoming entangled.

The ministry said misalignment was a regular occurrence that required workers to adjust the nets by hand. During one such adjustment, the worker became entangled in the rotating bar and sustained a critical injury.

Lack of protective measures

Investigators found there were no measures, procedures, guards or other devices in place to prevent workers from becoming entangled when adjusting the nets. The ministry said this constituted a violation of section 25(2)(h) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, which requires employers to take every reasonable precaution for worker protection.

Court outcome

Highline Produce Limited pleaded guilty in Windsor’s Provincial Offences Court and was convicted on Aug. 25, 2025. Justice of the Peace Helen-Nikoleta Karpouzos imposed the $115,000 fine. Crown counsel was Christine Perruzza.

The court also ordered a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge, which goes into a provincial government fund to help victims of crime.

Company background

Highline Produce operates a facility in Kingsville with rooms for growing and harvesting mushrooms. The process involves using nets layered with soil and compost mixtures that are later cleaned and reused through the Net Washer machine.

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