Solutions
Food Safety First is calling on the Canadian Government to make a commitment to:
Hire 1000 additional inspectors and veterinarians to improve compliance
There are almost 800 federally regulated meat processing facilities scattered across Canada, many processing thousands of animals everyday and/or producing tons of ready-to-eat products like cold cuts. There are also thousands of cheese, produce and other food production facilities, as well as delis and other retail outlets, all of which are potential sources for deadly food-borne bacteria. This territory is far too vast for the 1100 fully qualified food inspectors and 230 meat hygiene veterinarians currently on staff at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). While the problem of food-borne illness is complex, one dimension of the problem is clear: our food inspectors are too few and spread too thinly. For example, the inspector responsible for the Maple Leaf plant which was the source of tainted meat in the latest food-borne bacterial outbreak was also responsible for six other facilities. In order to ensure companies follow food safety regulations we simply need more inspectors.
Place an immediate moratorium on industry self-policing policies
Under the recently implemented Compliance Verification System (CVS) federal meat inspectors now spend only a fraction of their working day directly supervising production lines in Canadian food factories and slaughter facilities. The rest of the time they simply review company generated reports.
The investigation into the causes of the Maple Leaf Foods tragedy found that the CVS is seriously flawed and in need of “critical improvements related to its design, planning and implementation”.
The Compliance Verification System, and other industry self-policing plans should be put on hold until such time as the inspection deficit is fixed.
Remove obstacles preventing CFIA inspectors & vets from taking immediate action
CFIA inspectors are discouraged from taking immediate action when serious health problems arise. Instead, they are strongly encouraged to give the offending company a “Corrective Action Request” which states the nature of the problem and gives the company up to 60 days to address it. The theory of immediate action on the part of inspectors becomes more remote because under the “Compliance Verification System” inspectors spend 75% of their time at the plant reviewing company-generated reports and other administrative duties, instead of inspecting facilities.
Restore the system of public audit reports which were canceled under pressure from the meat industry
For 20 years, government inspectors reported and ranked the meat processing facilities they inspected. Under pressure from an industry lobby group called the Canadian Meat Council which complained about the bad press these reports created when obtained by reporters, the federal government canceled the practice soon after Stephen Harper took office. Canadians need to know which companies are meeting safety standards and which companies are not. The public audit system should be restored.
Click here to see which candidates in the 2008 federal election made the food safety commitment.
February 16, 2010 - 7:24 pm
If this is success what would failure look like?
I was just about to throw out a 1975 HC publication when I noticed E. Todd’s first estimate for foodborne disease in Canada – 400,000 per year (no deaths listed). Since then the official number has gone to 11 to 13 million cases and 500 deaths per year – meanwhile the Canadian population has only gone form about 25 million to about 34 million. If that is success or progress what would failure look like?
And yet we should remember that foodborne disease is a minor risk as far as deaths from bacterial infections is concerned. Official estimates are that between 8,000 to 12,000 Canadians die each year from antibiotic-resistant superbug infections. In other words, the 1000 new inspectors could only prevent 500 deaths per year if 100% successful. On the other hand if the money is spent on training doctors and scientists to treat superbug infections with phage therapy many more deaths could be prevented. If you were the government, where would you put the resources?
February 17, 2010 - 8:11 am
Success, indeed. And the Canadian government calls Canada’s food safety system among the best in the world! Canada’s health and safety regulators don’t really know how many people are sickened and die each year from food borne illness. The estimate of 13 million cases causing 500 deaths is described as conservative by many.
February 18, 2010 - 12:57 am
is this for real that food inspectors issue only corrective action requests the CFIA has failed tremendously corrective measures should not be a matter of whether it is followed or not it should be mandatory and we know when companies are left to regulate themselves what they absolutely NOTHING and thats when inspectors with powers to shut DOWN any establishment should be enforced vigorously wake up canada before its to late
February 18, 2010 - 11:00 am
It’s true that the CFIA strongly encourages inspectors to rely on Corrective Action Requests which can give comapnies up to 60 days to respond!
February 24, 2010 - 7:41 pm
If I remember right, the paper from CPHAC that jacked-up the number of foodborne cases annually in Canada from 2 million to 13 million did compensate for lactose intolerance; however, I wonder if it compensated for gluten sensitivity. We recently visited Finland and were amazed of how thoroughly both lactose and gluten were identified in foods. Having had some experience with persons suffering with either or both conditions, it is my opinion that it is impossible for people who suffer from either condition to avoid gluten or lactose and this could cause a false high estimate for foodborne disease. Take a look at the recent book entitled: The G free diet – a Gluten-free survival guide by Elisabeth Hasselbeck. What Canada needs is a system for clearly identifying lactose in both foods and oral drugs.
February 24, 2010 - 7:48 pm
Considering all the news about wrong or faulty analytical results in medicine, it is my opinion that analytical quality is the elephant in the room that most of us are trying to ignore – the solution is really simple: Make public all check sample or blind sample analytical results for public analysts.