Jim Thompson

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Homepage: http://www.foodsafetyfirst.ca


Posts by Jim Thompson

Video: Food safety cuts

January 24, 2012 - 9:53 am

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CBC The National

Union warns of cuts to federal food inspection

January 24, 2012 - 9:50 am

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By JESSICA MURPHY, London Free Press Almost four years after a deadly listeriosis outbreak, the union representing federal food inspectors says planned budget cuts could threaten the safety of Canada’s food supply. Bob Kingston, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s Agriculture Union, warned Monday the cuts would undermine exports and consumer confidence. Government [...]

Are Cuts to Canadian Meat Inspection a Spoiler?

January 24, 2012 - 9:47 am

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By Tom Sandborn, TheTyee.ca Is something rotten in the state of Canadian meat inspection? According to the union that represents federal food inspectors and other critics, the answer is yes. In August, the Harper government announced it would withdraw staff from inspecting plants that produce meat for local consumption in B.C., Manitoba and Saskatchewan in [...]

Food inspection budget cuts for CFIA jeered

January 24, 2012 - 9:45 am

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By Canadian Cattlemen The union representing federal food safety inspectors plans to ask Maple Leaf Foods and other processors to lobby for a reversal in proposed cuts to the federal food safety program. In its 2011-12 report on plans and priorities, a three-year expenditure plan each government department and agency must provide, the Canadian Food [...]

Meat inspectors’ union warns of food-safety program cuts

January 24, 2012 - 9:41 am

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By CTV News The Conservative government’s plan to slash spending on food safety could put Canadians at risk of another crisis like the deadly listeriosis outbreak, says the federal meat inspectors’ union. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s latest spending plan proposes deep budget cuts, and the union says the food-safety program will be hit the [...]

Inspectors criticize plan to cut inspections at meat plants

January 24, 2012 - 9:40 am

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By SARAH SCHMIDT, Vancouver Sun OTTAWA — The government’s plan to cut inspectors put in place to plug holes in Canada’s meat-inspection system in the aftermath of a deadly listeriosis outbreak would be a big step backwards, meat inspectors warned Monday. The plan, outlined in Canadian Food Inspection Agency funding estimates, spells out that “resources [...]

Food safety at risk with budget cuts expected, union says

January 24, 2012 - 9:38 am

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By Laura Payton, CBC News Canada’s food inspectors say they fear budget cuts could endanger food safety in Canada. Bob Kingston, the head of the Agriculture Union, raised the issue Monday morning, along with the daughter of a woman who died of listeriosis in 2008. An outbreak of the bacteria at a Maple Leaf Food [...]

As listeria scare fades, Canada cutting food safety inspections

January 24, 2012 - 9:36 am

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By Joanna Smith, Toronto Star OTTAWA—The Conservative government is planning cuts to food safety spending that the union representing federal meat inspectors warns could expose Canadians to another outbreak of food-borne illness. “Make no mistake,” Bob Kingston, president of the Agriculture Union told reporters at a news conference in Ottawa on Monday. “Food safety costs [...]

Ottawa axes food inspectors added in wake of deadly deli-meat outbreak

January 24, 2012 - 9:35 am

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By GLORIA GALLOWAY, Globe and Mail The federal government plans to cut the additional inspectors who were stationed at meat plants across the country after the Maple Leaf listeriosis outbreak killed 23 Canadians in 2008. A recent report by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency says “resources will sunset for listeriosis and for increased frequency of [...]

Food Safety Spending in Canada Might Be Cut

January 24, 2012 - 9:32 am

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By Dan Flynn, Food Safety News At some date soon in February or March, Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty may follow the tradition of putting on new shoes and walking into the House of Commons with a proposed new federal budget. Ever since it received the report of an independent inquiry into the deadly 2008 [...]

Listeriosis funding to be cut

January 16, 2012 - 10:37 am

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Agriculture Union asks food industry to object FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Ottawa (January 16, 2012) – The federal government has quietly announced plans to cancel important food safety initiatives put in place to shore up a weak inspection system and to address  a chronic shortage of inspectors after the Maple Leaf Foods listeriosis outbreak killed 23 [...]

Same as it ever was: 3 years after listeria in Maple Leaf cold cuts killed 23 Canada still asleep

December 20, 2011 - 5:15 pm

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By Doug Powell, Barfblog The Canadian government has fixed food safety. They said so in a press release. [Read more...]

New Meat Inspection Rules Coming

August 11, 2011 - 7:49 pm

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Source: A Channel Vancouver Island

Ottawa dumps meat inspection on British Columbia

August 10, 2011 - 12:41 pm

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After providing meat safety inspection service for decades, the union has been advised by Canadian Food Inspection Agency that federal inspectors will no longer check BC establishments that produce meat for BC consumers exclusively for E. coli, listeria, salmonella and other contaminants that can have deadly consequences when eaten.

Ottawa dumps meat inspection on Manitoba

August 10, 2011 - 12:40 pm

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Ottawa plans to dump inspection of some meat plants on the Manitoba government in a move that will expose unwitting Manitoba consumers to heightened risk of eating contaminated meat products, according to the Agriculture Union – PSAC, which represents federal food safety inspectors.

Carole Swan resigns

June 21, 2011 - 1:40 pm

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Ottawa (June 21, 2011) — Canadian Food Inspection Agency President Carole Swan is stepping down at the end of June, a full year ahead of the end of her appointment.  “We wish Carole well.  She had a tough job to do, made more difficult by chronic under funding, a reality that has prevented the CFIA [...]

Our inspectors can’t stop dangerous food imports

June 14, 2011 - 9:16 am

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By Bob Kingston, Ottawa Citizen The Canadian Food Inspection Agency might be trying hard to protect Canadian consumers from unsafe imported food. But, the simple fact is the agency is too broke to keep such products from store shelves. Canada’s import food inspection is a patchwork that ignores some products, while others are examined, with [...]

Apples top list of most pesticide-laden fruit

June 14, 2011 - 8:52 am

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By CTV.ca News Staff The old saying that an apple a day keeps the doctor away may need an asterisk, in the wake of a new report says some of the most popular produce contains the highest levels of pesticides.  [More...]

Briefing Note: Has a secret deal scuttled food inspection investment?

June 1, 2011 - 11:35 am

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Ottawa (June 1, 2011) – Finance Minister Flaherty’s March 22nd budget included an investment to bolster food inspection of $100 million over five years, right? Well, maybe not. According to sources within the CFIA, a secret deal to win mention in the March 2011 budget that will be re-tabled next week may actually result in [...]

Food, beverages imported from Taiwan may contain toxic chemical: CFIA

May 30, 2011 - 6:26 am

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By Sarch  Schmidt, PostMedia News Food and drink products from Taiwan tainted with a toxic chemical may have found their way into Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency warned Sunday as a local food-safety scandal goes global.  [More...]

Feces in imported food from less developed countries a rising concern: scientist

May 24, 2011 - 7:18 am

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By Derek Abma, PostMedia News Importing food from less developed countries increasingly leads to people literally eating more crap, according to scientists in the United States. [More...]

Consumer groups irked over suspension of some food inspections

April 30, 2011 - 8:36 am

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By Sarah Schmidt, Post Media News Consumer groups on Friday said Canada’s food inspection agency is making a big mistake by indefinitely suspending inspection activities that were meant to make sure food companies and restaurants don’t mislead consumers with underweight products or exaggerated nutrition claims.  [More...]

Consumer groups irked over suspension of some food inspections

April 29, 2011 - 4:06 pm

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By Sarah Schmidt, Post Media News Consumer groups on Friday said Canada’s food inspection agency is making a big mistake by indefinitely suspending inspection activities that were meant to make sure food companies and restaurants don’t mislead consumers with underweight products or exaggerated nutrition claims.  [More...]

Inspections of food weights, nutrition claims suspended

April 29, 2011 - 10:40 am

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By Sarah Schmidt, Post Media News OTTAWA – The federal government has suspended inspection activities indefinitely that were meant to make sure food companies and restaurants don’t mislead consumers with underweight products or exaggerated nutrition claims, Postmedia News has learned.  [More...]

CFIA abandons key consumer protections

April 29, 2011 - 10:35 am

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CFIA abandons key consumer protections Ottawa (28 April 2011) The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has abruptly and without explanation cancelled or deferred inspection activity in important areas designed to protect consumers from unsafe food products and fraudulent practices. According to CFIA documents released this morning by the food inspectors’ union, the CFIA [...]

Grocers mislabel foreign produce as local

April 26, 2011 - 6:01 pm

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By Kathy Tomlinson, CBC News A major western Canadian grocery chain has been selling produce advertised as “B.C. Grown” that came from the United States or elsewhere, CBC News has found.  [More...]

Food safety: the forgotten issue?

April 20, 2011 - 3:00 pm

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By David McKie, CBC.ca In the 2008 election campaign, federal party leaders vowed to make the country’s food safer. [More...]

Canadian inspection agency gets additional $100 million

March 23, 2011 - 6:45 am

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Five-year plan calls for inspector training, technological support By Sarah Schmidt, PostMedia News The Conservative government pledged Tuesday to boost spending on Canada’s food inspection system by $100 million over the next five years.  [More...]

Canadian bureaucrats shirked ‘duty to assist’ with listeria information request

March 22, 2011 - 1:20 pm

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By Doug Powell, barfblog The 2008 listeria outbreak in Canada caused by Maple Leaf deli meats that killed 23 and sickened 56 was characterized by multiple failures amongst multiple players – primarily Maple Leaf, the Canadian government, and dieticians at assisted-care facilities.  [More...]

CFIA to name food companies, importers that break rules

March 17, 2011 - 8:39 am

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By Sarah Schmidt, Postmedia News The federal government is starting to out food manufacturers that run into serious trouble with its inspectors, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said Wednesday. [More...]

Puffed-up food claims rampant: ex-CFIA official

March 8, 2011 - 3:54 pm

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By Sarah Schmidt, PostMedia News Exaggerated food claims are rampant on labels in Canadian grocery stores, but government inspectors are right not to crack down on them, the former president of Canada’s food police says. [More...]

BC Meat Processor Drops Federal Inspection

February 13, 2011 - 3:47 pm

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By News Desk, Food Safety News A meat processor that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency suspected had an E. coli contamination problem last November is opting out of federal inspection entirely and will be regulated only by the Province of British Columbia. [More...]

B.C. meat plant covers up positive E-coli test

January 20, 2011 - 6:29 pm

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CBC.ca One of British Columbia’s largest meat processing plants covered up lab results that showed a sample of its product was contaminated with the deadly E. coli O157 strain, CBC News has learned.  [More...]

Is this government red tape or Conservative control freakery?

January 16, 2011 - 8:32 am

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By Sarah Schmidt, PostMedia News Yesterday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made headlines by announcing his government’s pending war on government red tape to help small businesses (after a commission creates some paperwork of its own).  [More...]

Alleged ‘loophole’ lets stores change best-before date

January 6, 2011 - 8:18 am

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By Jon Woodward, ctvbc.ca A consumer advocate says he’s shocked about an alleged “loophole” in Canadian law that punishes grocery stores for changing a packaged-on date on perishable foods — but allows grocery stores to change a best-before date. [More...]

Food imports safe, say feds

December 8, 2010 - 6:05 pm

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By Laura Payton, Toronto Sun The man in charge of making sure Canada’s food is safe says the system is effective, with audits showing almost perfect compliance for food imports.  [More...]

Briefing Note – Inspection of Imported Food

December 7, 2010 - 11:59 am

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To: Members of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-food The inspection of food imports in Canada is one of the weakest components of the CFIA’s work.  Consider: There are no inspectors dedicated to imports for food safety purposes CFIA cannot afford to dedicate full time inspectors to ensure the safety of imported food products. [...]

Ten Years Later, They’re Still Haunted by E. coli

December 3, 2010 - 10:54 am

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By Ross Anderson, Food Safety News Ten years ago, the picturesque farming town of Walkerton, Ontario, was plunged into a nightmare of food poisoning that sickened 2,300 residents, killed seven, and terrorized the town and its surroundings for weeks.  [More...]

Paperwork delays listeriosis lawsuit settlement

December 2, 2010 - 10:53 am

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Joanna Smith, The Toronto Star It has been nearly two years since Maple Leaf Foods agreed to compensate victims of a deadly nationwide outbreak of listeriosis linked to its deli meats, but not a single cheque has been signed.  [More...]

Rick Mercer Report: A Message Regarding Food Safety

December 2, 2010 - 10:35 am

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Former Health Canada chief slams agency for backing food claims without posting studies

December 2, 2010 - 10:29 am

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By Sarah Schmidt, PostMedia News The former head of Health Canada’s nutritional sciences bureau blasted the federal department Monday for failing to explain why it is approving health claims submitted by the food industry.  [More...]

Critics bite into food safety

November 30, 2010 - 8:21 am

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By Laura Payton, Toronto Sun It’s hard to know whether the food you’re buying at the grocery store is safe, say critics of Canada’s food inspection system.  [More...]

No audit of meat plant inspectors done: Ritz

November 18, 2010 - 5:11 pm

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By Sarah Schmidt, PostMedia News Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz on Thursday conceded the government has not conducted an external audit to determine how many inspectors are needed to police Canada’s meat plants.  [More...]

CFIA deflects food safety criticisms

November 15, 2010 - 5:24 pm

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By Barry Wilson, The Western Producer Senior government officials responsible for food safety and inspection have a message: the system has never been better.  [More...]

Audit finds sanitation problems at some Canadian meat, poultry plants

November 9, 2010 - 9:01 am

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Allison Jones and Steve Rennie The Canadian Press 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.  [More...]

Food safety watchdog still unclear on numbers

November 5, 2010 - 11:02 am

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By Joanna Smith, The Toronto Star The federal food safety watchdog is still unable to say how many full-time inspectors work in ready-to-eat meat plants more than two years after a deadly nationwide outbreak of listeriosis traced to tainted deli meats.  [More...]

Feds say food system safe, inspectors beg to differ

November 5, 2010 - 10:52 am

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By Laura Payton, QMi Agency Government experts say Canada’s food system is one of the safest in the world, but the union representing food agency inspectors says that’s not true.  [More...]

Canada still lacking inspectors at meat plants: CFIA

November 5, 2010 - 10:49 am

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By Sarah Schmidt, PostMedia News The federal government doesn’t have enough inspectors at plants that make ready-to-eat meat to properly police the high-risk operations — and the situation won’t be rectified until next spring, according to internal staffing projections released to Postmedia News.  [More...]

Government spins food safety

November 3, 2010 - 10:46 pm

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Ottawa (November 4, 2010) 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 [...]

New internal CFIA documents show meat inspection remains dangerously inadequate

October 25, 2010 - 4:38 pm

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Many of the shortcomings that contributed to the Maple Leaf Foods listeriosis disaster two years ago continue to plague the Canadian meat inspection system today, according to a trio of assessments of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s meat hygiene program quietly released last week. The government’s attempt to obscure this conclusion through a quiet release [...]