Report finds Canadian food inspection gaps

TORONTO, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Gaps in Canada's food inspection system that foreshadowed the current deadly listeriosis outbreak were detected three years ago, a government report shows.

A 2005 internal report by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, called the Food Emergency Response Review, outlined problems with the agency's food inspection procedures and delays in issuing public warnings about potentially dangerous food products, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported Wednesday. The report also cited a lack of follow-up after problems were identified, said the CBC, which obtained the review through the federal Access to Information Act, as part of a joint food safety investigation with the Toronto Star.

"The safety of food in Canada is somewhat unpredictable," said Rick Holley, a food safety expert at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. "There should be a reasonable level of confidence that the food that we eat is not going to make us sick."

The review concluded there was "no clear policy on when a recall requires public warning," the network reported.

Mike McBane, national director of the the Canadian Health Coalition, said the report was "shocking."

"Can you imagine? An emergency response program that has no policy on recalls?" he said.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Sept. 3 the government would investigate the recent listeriosis outbreak tied to meat from a Maple Leaf Foods plant in Toronto. Eighteen deaths have been linked to the outbreak.