Residents file lawsuit against N.B. potato chips company
Legal action is being taken against Covered Bridge Potato Chips in Woodstock.
Residents living next to the company facility claim the plant is disrupting their quality of life and comfort in their homes.
The claim alleges that operations at the Woodstock facility have created persistent conditions that have negatively and substantially affected nearby homes and properties. Residents cited ongoing impacts and safety concerns, including excessive noise, industrial odours, intense lighting, heavy truck traffic, and the removal of natural vegetation that previously acted as a buffer between industrial operations and residential areas.
“These are not new homes built beside an established industrial site,” said Melody Hannah, one of the residents. “Many of us have lived here peacefully for generations. The unexpected scale and intensity of industrial activity now taking place have fundamentally changed daily life in our neighbourhood for the worse.”
The Covered Bridge facility relocated to Woodstock last year after a fire destroyed the previous plant in Waterville in 2024.
Residents believed the Woodstock facility would be temporary, but say the company has added more fry cookers, fueled by a 30,000-litre propane tank located near homes in the neighbourhood, raising safety concerns.
The residents are represented by Chiasson & Roy, a law firm based in Bathurst, New Brunswick.
They claim their suit was filed as a last resort after repeated efforts to resolve the matter through municipal and provincial channels failed.
“We support economic development,” said resident Robert Harrison. “The goal is not to oppose business or employment, but to protect long-established neighbourhoods from excessive industrial intrusion.”
Covered Bridge Potato Chips Ltd. has not offered a comment on the claims.