First of all the information comes from a left of center source but it is a credible source.
The guy who wrote it has a history with the Globe and the Calgary Herald and the Calgary
paper is a right wing paper.
Aside from that, XL Foods is a disaster and has been from the beginning. They employed
foreign workers who rarely complains because weak labour laws would be insufficient to
protect them. The Government has looked the other way on this one for years.
The CFIA can't hide behind them they were invisible in the first place. This is the most
useless organization there is. You cannot escape the fact that there were 46 inspectors
at the plant, and they didn't see or hear or catch anything. Now even if I don't agree with
the present government on too many things, I can't see first hand how they could have
directly responsible for this specific incident. The Agency, yest. Even indirectly yes but
directly NO.
Governments in general have been reciting a mantra of cut red tape to be more competitive.
The real answer is not to make free trade deals with countries that won't meet our standards
in a modern civilized society. We need regulations, the last down turn in 2008 proved that.
unfettered capitalism is every bit as bad as unfettered socialism. Lax government regulations
and an Agency that can't do the job contributed to a disaster, but the company is to blame
they were interested solely in profit and to hell with their customers and the consumer.
Their attitude, greed, and deceptive practices were to blame.
They write the reports- find the reports if the Govt will make them public and you will see how it was documented.
Inspectors and CFIA have little power to enforce outside of a closure.
They should have the authority based upon evidence to sequester production- then it can be checked. With JIT and contracts to supply companies - tying up end product of a production line costs the company money.
That and larger fines including Jail time.
Now the NP is not left of center - I find they are quite impartial and go after the Govt whoever they are.
More problems found at Alberta meat plant at centre of massive E. coli recall | Canada | News | National Post
BROOKS, Alta. — Trouble continues for an Alberta meat plant as it tries to resume normal processing under the watchful eye of federal food safety inspectors.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says on its website that its staff observed a number of problems last week at XL Foods.
They included meat areas that weren’t adequately cleaned and water sanitizer that wasn’t maintained at a high enough temperature.
It says inspectors also noted there was condensation on pipes as well as no sanitizing chemical in mats used for cleaning employees’ boots.
The CFIA says it ordered the plant’s managers to take corrective action, which included sending potentially-contaminated meat for rendering.
The plant in Brooks was closed Sept. 27 due to E. coli contaminated meat that led to a massive recall.
Workers began slaughtering cattle Oct. 29 at the plant but there has been no word yet on when the beef can be sold to retailers or consumers.
“Over the course of the first week of operations, the CFIA determined that the establishment’s overall food safety controls were being effectively managed,” the agency says on its website.
“As would be expected in a facility that has not been in regular operation for some time, there have been some observations made by CFIA that resulted in the CFIA issuing new Corrective Action Requests to XL Foods Inc.. since the plant reopened.”
The agency says it also requested the company submit corrective action plans outlining how they will address the issues in the longer term and mitigate future risks.
The CFIA says it is still waiting on lab results from tests that it and the company did on product from the plant before allowing XL Foods to sell trim and ground beef from the plant.
The total number of illnesses linked to the outbreak stands at 17.
Management of the plant has been taken over by JBS USA, an American subsidiary of a Brazilian company.
The US Food Safety and Inspection Service visited the plant on November 2, 2012 and conducted its own audit. The CFIA says those audit findings will be released by the US at a later date.