.
.... so government says it means what they're doing now (frighteningly little) must be working, so there's no need to worry.
(Presumably it'll be time to worry about food safety when it becomes obvious what they're doing isn't enough? When people get ill and die as a result of disease outbreaks from our food? Oh wait.... hasn't this already happened? :rolleyes; )
So who is concerned about the safety of our food? Anyone? *sound of crickets*
(Picture from cefta)
Animal auction inspections needed, says B.C. SPCA
By Stephen Thomson, November 25, 2010
An animal-welfare advocate says an inspection system is needed to monitor the condition of livestock that goes to auction in the province.
The call comes as the B.C. government embarks on an effort to update the province’s aging animal-health legislation.
“Surveillance of auctions in particular would be excellent if they were interested in putting that into place,” said Geoff Urton, B.C. SPCA animal welfare manager.
Urton said there isn’t a clear enough picture available of scope of the health and welfare problems such animals as cattle encounter at the privately run auctions.
But he said there are risks from a range of infectious diseases and other forms of illness when animals endure the stress of transportation and are housed in close quarters.
“Ontario has full-time livestock inspectors who do that and we don’t have anything like that in B.C. but we definitely need it,” he told the Straight by phone.
B.C. chief veterinary officer Paul Kitching said the province licenses animal auctions but does not have a system in place for inspections.
On Tuesday (November 23), the Ministry of Agriculture launched a 60-day review of the Animal Disease Control Act and related policies. The public is being asked for input.
Kitching told the Straight by phone that the review will help the province bring its legislation around disease prevention and control in line with the rest of the country.
He said the 50-year-old legislation is outdated and doesn’t address a range of diseases nor reflect the relationship between provincial and federal authorities.
“There’s a whole spectrum of disease which aren’t mentioned, aren’t included, weren’t even identified possibly in those days.”
From: http://www.straight.com/article-361550/vancouver/animal-auction-inspections-needed-says-bc-spca
Food safety advisory panel falls short: critics
By LAURA PAYTON, Parliamentary Bureau
November 18, 2010.
OTTAWA – Opposition critics say a new panel of experts isn't enough to make sure Canadians' food is safe, as the union in charge of inspections complains they don't have enough resources more than two years after listeria killed 22 people.
The union that represents food inspectors says that 16 months after former health-care executive Sheila Weatherill gave the government 57 recommendations on avoiding another food safety crisis, Canada still doesn't have enough inspectors and hasn't equipped them with the technology they need to do their jobs.
In response, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced the new Ministerial Advisory Board on food safety, which he says meets one of Weatherill's recommendations.
Ritz told a House committee the panel is “just one more way that we're improving an already world-recognized food safety system.”
“This highly qualified and diverse advisory board builds upon our government’s increased investments, hiring of more inspectors and enhanced listeria testing,” he said.
The panel will meet regularly and report annually, a statement from Ritz's department said.
Opposition critics, however, say appointing a panel doesn't take care of the need for more inspectors. Liberal MP Wayne Easter and NDP MP Malcolm Allen say they want an independent audit to decide how many inspectors are needed to handle the work load.
They also worry there's no one on the panel from the inspectors' union or on behalf of consumers.
'Food safety in Canada is an accident;' Prof Rick Holley
November 20th, 2010
“Food safety in Canada, believe it or not, is an accident. It really is,” says Rick Holley, a University of Manitoba food-safety expert and an adviser to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
That’s how Toronto’s Globe and Mail newspaper kicks off a week-long series on the global marketplace for food, and how Canada has yet to come to terms with the regulatory, economic and technological challenges of global food, by reporter Steven Chase.
Last year, Canada imported more than 33 million litres of apple juice from China; 11.8 million kilograms of pickles and relish from India and 4.9 million kilograms of cashews from Vietnam, all part of a two-decade-long surge that has made imported food – often from developing countries – a significant component of the Canadian diet. All of it is grown or processed far beyond the reach of Canada’s food inspection system, which – contrary to what consumers might expect – is still struggling to catch up to the reality of a global food market.
Critics say Canada’s ability to safeguard its citizens from the risks of both domestic and imported food is falling behind – charges levelled even as efforts are under way at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to update practices for the 21st-century global marketplace.
Today, foreign food makes up 15 to 20 per cent of this country’s diet.
Importers are not currently required by Ottawa to provide documentation that traces a primary food product to its origin. Some food retailers and importers may, however, already collect this information for their own commercial purposes.
Chief Food Safety Officer Brian Evans says CFIA intends to propose that importers be required to document the origin of all “ single entity products” – as opposed to multi-ingredient goods – they bring into Canada. These would include fish, eggs, leafy greens, salads, fresh fruits and vegetables. We would like to have country of origin traceability requirements as part of the first set of regulations going forward. We would like to see that in 18 to 24 months.”
However, he said, the timing and final details of such a plan is up to the government.
Roughly about 1 to 2 per cent of foreign food imports that enter Canada are inspected. The agency heavily inspects some products such as meat and also pays closer attention to goods that have a history of carrying food-borne illness – such as fish or leafy greens or eggs.
The CFIA argues that the absence of big problems shows the system works. (wtf??) In any given day, Dr. Evans says, about 100-million meals are eaten in Canada – which works out to about 36.5 billion meals at year. And what’s going wrong? There are about 250 to 300 recalls of food each year following inspections or consumer complaints. Canadians also suffer an estimated 11- million cases of acute gastroenteritis each year – a relatively minor amount – and one that federal authorities suggest is largely due to food preparation mistakes or bad hygiene rather than substandard imports.
However, the University of Manitoba’s Dr. Holley says a push for traceability is not a priority when there are other problems with food safety, including a lack of comprehensive information on what is making Canadians sick. “It's like putting a sunroof on a car that has bald tires.”
Globe & Mail 6-part series here
Wow it sure is reassuring to read they're on top of it. I mean, it's just food safety afterall...
One of these days it's really going to bite them (us) in the ass but unfortunately it will be too late to admit it could have been predicted & avoided.
Don't get me started on the outrageous issue of farm raised salmon right here in BC... that is another trainwreck disaster waiting to happen.
I really don't understand why we still blindly trust that they're on the ball and actually keeping our food chain safe!
They're not..so what now?
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