LONDON, ONT -- A new deal between Canada and Mexico means farm workers will once again be allowed to come to Canada despite a recent death over the weekend.
Mexico blocked workers coming to Canada after two men, aged 31 and 24, died after contracting COVID-19 in Essex County.
On Sunday it was announced that a worker had died following a large outbreak at a farm facility in Norfolk County.
Since the outbreak began in May nearly 200 temporary foreign workers have been diagnosed with COVID-19.
The Norfolk County Health Unit put the majority of the workers into isolation at local hotels however a few required hospitalization.
On Saturday one of the workers died in the intensive care unit at a London hospital.
Norfolk is not the only area in southwestern Ontario to deal with outbreaks.
Towards the end of April dozens of cases were reported at Greenhill Produce in Chatham-Kent. That outbreak has been declared.
Essex County has also been dealing with outbreaks where two workers have died, which lead to the original ban from Mexico.
The Mexican government says it has now reached a deal with Canada for improvements in the temporary foreign worker program.
The deal includes increased inspections and more support for Mexican officials to report unsafe working conditions.
In 2019 roughly 26,000 Mexican workers came to Canada for the season.
With files from the Canadian Press.
