There’s a uniquely international atmosphere in the bustling fishing community of Bay de Verde these days.
About 20 workers from Thailand are employed at the local seafood processing plant in what many believe is a first for the Newfoundland fishery.
Officials with the company that operates the plant, Quinlan Brothers Ltd., say they were forced to look outside the country after extensive recruiting efforts closer to home came up short.
“We would prefer to hire locally, and we put lots of effort into it. Unfortunately, the company was not able to get the contingent of workers it needed,” company spokesman Gabe Gregory said Monday.
About 450 people are employed at the plant, making it one of the busiest inshore processing facilities in the province.
