Listeriosis

Cuts to CFIA put food supply at pre-listeriosis outbreak risk: PSAC

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight
Rating: 
4

Chris Plecash – April 23, 2012

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz insists that cuts to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency in the federal government’s 2012 budget won’t compromise food safety, but the Public Service Alliance of Canada says that job cuts at the agency will roll back improvements to food inspection that were made in response to the 2008 listeriosis outbreak.

“We’re looking at administrative money for the most part, programming is not being affected,” Mr. Ritz (Battlefords-Lloydminster, Sask.) told The Hill Times following the federal budget’s March 29 tabling. “There will be no changes in frontline inspectors.”

US to Canada: your meat inspection sorta sucks, only send us the good stuff

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
2

Doug Powell – December 21, 2010

The dean of Canadian food and farm reporting, Jim Romahn, has written a powerful piece about the continuing failures in Canadian meat inspection – failures that had to be pointed out by Americans.

More than a year after 21 people died after eating Maple Leaf Foods Inc. products contaminated with Listeria monocytoges, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency was failing to enforce its own standards and there was sloppy follow-up when hazardous conditions were identified.

U.S. audit finds sanitation problems at some Canadian meat, poultry plants

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
0

Allison Jones and Steve Rennie – November 8, 2010

Canadian Food Inspection Agency documents often painted an inaccurate picture of the conditions at some of Canada’s meat and poultry plants where sanitation problems persisted, an American audit has found.

A recently released audit by the United States Department of Agriculture’s inspection service revealed several areas of “systemic concern,” though the report notes the Canadian agency has taken significant steps to correct problems.

Government spins food safety

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
4

Jim Thompson – November 4, 2010

Ottawa —The federal government has failed to meet some of the most important recommendations for reform of Canada’s food inspection system made in the wake of the Maple Leaf Foods listeriosis disaster, in spite of claims to the contrary, according to the federal food inspectors’ union.

The Agriculture Union – PSAC leveled this charge as the House of Commons Health Committee begins hearings this morning on the implementation of recommendations following Canada’s deadliest food borne illness outbreak.

How effective is Canada’s meat-inspection system?

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
0
Kevin Allen

Insiders say Canada’s meat-inspection system isn’t keeping consumers safe from food-borne illnesses.

Alex Roslin – October 21, 2010

At the end of a gravel road 20 kilometres east of Fort St. John, Arlene Laughren’s house used to be her little piece of heaven. Now it’s like a prison.

Laughren moved here six years ago with her husband, Keith Holmes, to raise horses, llamas, sheep, and chickens and to grow vegetables on a 66-hectare hobby farm amid the picturesque coulees, hills, and ravines by the Peace River.

Union says food inspection still falls short two years after listeriosis

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
3

The Canadian Press – October 22, 2010

OTTAWA - The Harper government says it's making "considerable progress" implementing recommendations to prevent another deadly outbreak of listeriosis, but the union representing food inspectors isn't buying it.

The Progress on Food Safety report, released with no fanfare Thursday afternoon, says $88 million has been poured into the Canadian Food Inspection Agency since an independent investigator called for a series of improvements one year ago.

Canadian food recalls more frequent

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
0

Canadian food recalls are increasing both in frequency and in complexity, researchers at Brock University have discovered.
A team led by Michael J. Armstrong, a professor of quality management at Brock in St. Catharines, Ont., compiled the number of food recalls and allergy alerts issued by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency between 2004 and 2009.

FAIR testifies to Listeriosis Inquiry

Topics: 
Food safety, Listeriosis, David Hutton, Videos, Regulatory oversight, Food industry, Testimony
Rating: 
3.5

Executive Director David Hutton testifies to the Food Safety Subcommittee which is investigating the 2008 Listeriosis outbreak. 
1 June 2009

Prepared testimony
I’d like to thank the committee for the opportunity to give testimony.

Whistleblower legislation might have prevented listeriosis outbreak, say activists

Topics: 
Food safety, CFIA, Listeriosis, Regulatory oversight, Food industry
Rating: 
3

Employees can prevent disasters by providing early warning. In Canada, we have had no lack of tragedies, but we don't seem to have learned this lesson.

By Michele Brill-Edwards, Brian McAdam and David Hutton
Hill Times: October 6th, 2008

As the listeriosis outbreak continues to claim lives, many people are asking whether this tragedy could have been prevented by proper regulatory oversight of the industry. But there is another aspect that has not been discussed: the role of whistleblower protection laws.

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