Notes for an Address by Dr. Brian Evans, Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food Subcommittee on Food Safety

House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario

April 20, 2009

Check Against Delivery

Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen, I appreciate the opportunity to appear before this committee and welcome your contributions to our sincere efforts to achieve the highest possible standards of health protection for Canadians. My name is Dr. Brian Evans. I am the Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and the Chief Veterinary Officer of Canada.

I'd like to start by further extending our profound sympathy to the families affected. It is clear that collectively we did not meet the expectations of Canadians.

I'll begin by giving you a brief timeline of the events of last summer related to the recall. I'll then talk a little bit about our meat inspection framework. Finally, I'll tell you what the CFIA and its government partners have done to strengthen our food safety system with regard to both prevention and response to Listeria, to contribute to higher levels of protection.

Outbreak timeline

The listeriosis outbreak began in early June and was detected by public health officials in Ontario over the ensuing seven weeks. Detailed investigative work at municipal and provincial levels led to their advising the CFIA on August 6, 2008, that a possible food link was suspected.

As there has been some confusion around it, let me underline that date. It was on August 6th that the CFIA was first informed of a public health investigation into two listeriosis cases in a nursing home. Samples taken sixteen days previously from meat used to make sandwiches in early July at the facility had tested positive.

Upon notification, a similar level of investigation was immediately undertaken to confirm the source of contamination through multiple lines of inquiry. We needed to provide Canadians with credible information upon which to base their actions and decisions.

The investigation entailed determining the source of the meat products through purchasing and supply records, identification of the specific product, and the relevant lot and production codes that were used in the making of sandwiches from which the test samples had been taken. Once determined, a further search was undertaken based on distribution records to other locations, in order to find an unopened package of the same type and code. This is critical to ascertain whether the contamination of the product occurred during handling and preparation at the nursing home or whether the product had been contaminated at production.

A sample was located on August 12th and submitted to the CFIA food laboratory in Scarborough. Also on August 12th, the CFIA was advised by another District Health Unit of two additional listeriosis illnesses in a hospital in Halton Region, and of positive test results on two samples of deli meats served at the hospital. However, the patients did not have a history of having consumed the product.

Based on the new developments, the CFIA Office of Food Safety and Recall initiated a teleconference on August 13th to bring all the jurisdictions together to review all the laboratory and epidemiological information. A detailed sampling plan to cover all products produced on the same production lines was shared with all the parties, to assist in locating and collecting samples over the next two days for testing at the CFIA Scarborough laboratory.

The calls continued for the next two days, as well, to facilitate information sharing and analysis and to collectively determine if the evidence supported the conducting of an advisory or recall.

On the evening of Saturday August 16th, the CFIA laboratory confirmed the sample collected on August 12th was positive for Listeria monocytogenes. Although the molecular typing would not be available for another seven days to confirm that the isolate from the meat product matched those of the illnesses, a public advisory was issued in the early morning hours of August 17th.

HACCP & CVS

I'd like to take a moment to talk about one area of our inspection activities that was frequently cited as germane to the Listeria issues of last summer.

One of the techniques that governments around the world have adopted for effectively identifying and preventing food safety risks is called Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points, or HACCP.

Its use has been mandatory in federally regulated food establishments in Canada since 2005. It is a standardized, internationally-recognized system used by most of the developed world.

An emphasis on prevention is absolutely critical in limiting the potential contamination of meat products with pathogens such as Listeria, given their presence in the environment. Traditional physical inspection approaches are not effective, as their presence cannot be detected by sensory means such as seeing, tasting, touching and smelling.

HACCP identifies the various stages in food production where food safety hazards are known to occur. A food safety check is inserted at these stages to detect and prevent problems early on. If a problem is found, corrective measures are immediately taken. This process puts the focus on the prevention of food safety risks rather than "after the fact" detection on end product.

This is not privatization. It serves to increase industry's accountability for the safety of the foods they produce. There has not, is not, and will not be any diminished role or investment by the government through the mandatory use of HACCP. The setting of standards, verification of compliance and application of enforcement actions by Government remains unchanged.

At the CFIA, we use an inspection framework and toolset called the Compliance Verification System or CVS. Essentially a detailed checklist for inspectors, it assures consistency and uniformity in our inspection activities and prescribes inspection frequencies.

Again, the CVS does not change the government's role in establishing food safety standards, verifying compliance with food safety requirements, or enforcement activities.

I would now like to provide some detail on what the CFIA has done in the aftermath of the events of last summer to strengthen food safety in the context of Listeria, as part of our ongoing commitment to continuous improvement.

Our reviews of the events of last summer pointed to the need to enhance protocols and activities to strengthen protection against this potentially lethal pathogen. In parallel, we need to continue the same important work against other microbial threats to the food supply.

Specifically:

• We identified a previously unknown risk for the harboring of organic material deep within slicers, in spite of their routine cleaning and sanitizing. We now direct industry to clean slicing equipment more thoroughly and aggressively.
• We have enhanced CFIA direct oversight and verification of equipment sanitation and equipment maintenance.
• Environmental testing for Listeria in ready-to-eat meat establishments is now a mandatory component of an approved HACCP plan.
• Results of all environmental tests, as well as previously prescribed end product tests, are reviewed daily.
• We conduct trend analysis of positive test results for Listeria in the plant environment. Looking at aggregate environmental tests over a period of time will provide us with early warning of potential problems, so that corrective actions can be taken before a positive test is found in food.
• Environmental testing as part of the CFIA inspection tasks have been re-introduced and, along with government end product testing, this is occurring at a higher level of frequency.
• Investments have also been made at the laboratory with ongoing validation of new test methods and increased capacity to conduct genetic fingerprinting of isolates.

The CFIA worked with Health Canada to update directives regarding the control of Listeria in federally registered ready-to-eat meat processing plants.

The improved directives focus on early detection and control of Listeria in the environment, to prevent the transfer of bacteria to contact surfaces and food.

The CFIA proposed, discussed, and challenged the revised directives and implementation strategies with food safety scientists, industry experts, inspection staff and relevant unions.

Full implementation of the new government product and environmental testing programs was completed on April 1, 2009.

Furthermore, the CFIA will promote equivalency in these measures from our trading partners, with additional verifications of products imported into Canada.

Taken together, these actions will help reduce the chances of a similar outbreak occurring and will allow us to do a better job in the future of monitoring the shifts and trends in microbial pathogen presence in the operating environment of federal meat processing establishments.

Conclusion

Listeria, as with other bacteria, is commonly present in food production environments. It can and must be controlled but it cannot be entirely eliminated. The effort to control Listeria is on-going, and requires a collective commitment.

We welcome the work of this committee and its contribution to guiding additional investments to protecting Canadians.

Thank you for your time today. I will be pleased to answer any questions you may have for me.