Expert recommends surveillance to solve tainted food outbreaks

Friday, December 23, 2011

by SUSAN MANN

A Manitoba food safety expert is critical of Canada’s approach to solving food-borne illness outbreaks.

Rick Holley, a food safety and microbiology professor at the University of Manitoba, says increased testing of end products is what the public wants but that’s not the solution to the problem. “Everybody is trying to do their very best. The problem is the focus is on the wrong place.”

The federal government hasn’t placed any emphasis on food-borne illness surveillance, he points out, even though officials don’t know what causes the most cases of food-borne illnesses – vegetables or meat, for instance.

Holley made the comments in response to the federal government’s recent report outlining its response and actions to recommendations by independent investigator Sheila Weatherill to strengthen Canada’s food safety system. She was appointed by the federal government after an outbreak of listeriosis killed 22 Canadians in the summer of 2008. The problem was traced to federally regulated meat processing plant Maple Leaf Foods. Her report contained 57 recommendations and was released in 2009.

Holley says the Canadian approach to food safety must be changed. There’s a dangerous tendency by governments to use food testing for pathogenic bacteria that cause illnesses to show consumers they’re doing something about food safety. “This is an irresponsible approach.”

When it comes to food safety, what the government should be doing is preventing problems from happening in the first place, he says.

As part of the final report, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced the government plans to develop a new food safety bill to address Weatherill’s recommendation that food safety legislation needs to be simplified and modernized.

In a press release, Ritz says food safety is a priority for his government.

Meagan Murdoch, Ritz’s press secretary, says the agriculture and health departments are working together to develop the new bill but it isn’t known when it will be introduced.

Prof. Sylvan Charlebois, associate dean of research and graduate studies at the University of Guelph’s College of Management and Economics, says food safety laws need to be simplified for consumers. Up to now most polices that have been implemented were meant to respond to key players in the food industry, including processors and commodity groups. But that has to change.

“The Weatherill report provides a great opportunity for the Canadian government to design systems to respond to consumer trends and needs,” he says, noting that’s something that currently lacking in food safety laws particularly when it comes to risk communications.

The current system of communicating risks to consumers, such as alerts and food recalls, is highly reliant on conventional media communication channels. But new, more modern methods  “in real time” must be implemented.

Technology exists now that can alert consumers of potential food hazards. For example, there are labels that can change colours when a yogurt turns sour. So far “we haven’t really empowered consumers to educate themselves,” he says.

The government’s plans to modernize and simplify its food safety legislation likely won’t affect farmers.

Erin Fletcher, spokesperson for Grain Farmers of Ontario, says most of the report was about detection methods for listeria, which is more of a livestock and meat-related matter. But “we are in support of measures that the government takes to increase the safety of our food.”

Gary Stordy, public relations manager for the Canadian Pork Council, says they understand the proposed new food safety bill won’t lead to more red tape for farmers.

Stordy says much of the work already done to address Weatherill’s report was directed at processors.

In its press release, the government says it accepted all of Weatherill’s recommendations and earmarked $75 million in 2009 to implement them. Additional funding announcements were made in 2010 and 2011 as the government continues its work to reduce food safety risks, enhance surveillance and early detection of food-borne pathogens and illnesses and improve emergency response. All of the funding announcements build on the government’s commitment in 2008 to spend $489.5 million over five years in the Food and Consumer Safety Action Plan.

Holley says farmers must adhere to good agricultural practices but beyond that there is very little they can do.

Charlebois says farmers do care what consumers think. “I can’t say that was the case 15, 20 years ago.” BF