KITCHENER — Ninety years of production came to an end at Kitchener's landmark Schneiders meat plant Thursday, as the very last pack of bologna rolled off the line and was celebrated by teary-eyed employees.

Three and a half years after Maple Leaf Foods announced it was closing the aging factory, cutting 1,200 jobs, workers in hard hats and blue coveralls crowded around the final production run to watch their plant fade into history.

Someone shouted "that's the last log" as dozens lined up along the conveyor belt to take pictures. Plant manager Rick Larose, who joined at 18 and never left, signed the final package of Schneiders bologna and told his workers he was proud of them.

The employees gathered for group photos, clutching the bologna like a prize, as the machinery that produced it was shut down for good. In the coming months, their Courtland Avenue plant will be stripped bare, emptied out and eventually sold.

"This has got everything to do with the age of our building and zero to do with our people. I'm so proud of our people," Larose said. "But seeing the emotions on people's faces today, it's pretty hard."

That last tube of bologna will be donated to the Waterloo Region Museum, along with 125 years of company artifacts that will be preserved thanks to a $200,000 grant from owner Maple Leaf Foods.

With production now finished, the lunchroom will serve up the last box of bologna on Friday, as the final few workers left at the plant clean out their lockers and say their goodbyes.

The company says many laid-off employees have already found new jobs or retired, but there are still plenty who are wondering what comes next.

"This sucks," said Kim Karges, an operator who began at Schneiders as a teenager, as she watched production come to an end.

"We all thought we were going to retire here. Now we're going to wake up tomorrow, and we're not going to have a full-time job. A lot of us have mortgages and kids. Some of us are single moms. It's a really scary feeling."

Larose, who said the closure was almost as painful as the death of his mother, fought back tears and reminisced about a plant he's worked at for more than 41 years. His employees have also been his teammates, friends and family over the decades, he said.

"This has been a long time coming. … You see it coming, but that doesn't make it any sweeter on the day," he said.

"I've been prepping myself for this day, but I don't know if it's really hit me yet. … I bought my first house at 21, got married and had a great life thanks to this place."

Schneiders was one of the last big manufacturers in Kitchener where people could get a job right out of high school and stay until retirement, Larose said.

"We're the last of the big guys to leave. When people came here, it was a job for life. In this global economy, you don't see that anymore," he said.

Larose's immediate plans are to take a vacation to the Caribbean. After that, he'll oversee the decommissioning of the plant that opened in 1925 and the transfer of production to the new Hamilton facility that's replacing it. In May, he'll retire.

Some longtime employees, like human resources manager Stuart Campbell, say they're "still processing" the closure. Others said Thursday they're just relieved the long, dreaded wait for the last day was finally over.

"I made a promise I'd stay until the end. It's the end now," said Paul Hauck, a maintenance man since 1981. "This is the last of an era, and people are very proud of that."

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Dennis Lesperance, president of the plant's employee association, worried Waterloo Region may never see another company quite like Schneiders again — a business known for its unique culture of multi-generational employees, family values and co-operative relationship with its internal union.

"I can't see it, not in my lifetime. It's just sad," he said. "It's surreal that the last day is finally here."

Archivist Karen Trussler was also teary, but boosted knowing the company's history will be preserved by the Waterloo Region Museum. That includes artifacts from early meat grinders to Schneiders advertising through the decades.

After the crowd left, she took a moment to nibble on a piece of Schneiders Blue Ribbon bologna. It's a product that dates back to the 19th century, when founder J.M. Schneider started his food empire in Kitchener selling meat out of his kitchen on Courtland Avenue.

Everyone knew the end was coming, Trussler said. And they leaned on each other to get through it.

"I feel sad because it's the ending. It's just tough to go through. But I can't say enough about how everyone has come together to be strong at the end," she said.

Videos A tribute video below by local Huckleberry Films, commissioned by Schneiders. Here's the direct link for mobile users:



Staff gathered for one last photo Thursday:

- Inside the future of Schneiders meats

- D'Amato: 'You might say it was an honour to work there'