OTTAWA -- Federal beef inspectors at the XL Foods plant in southern Alberta whose E. coli crisis sparked the country鈥檚 largest meat recall were ordered to turn a blind eye to contamination on carcasses being processed for sale to Canadians, 麻豆影视 has learned, a directive that was imposed by the inspectors鈥� supervisors lasting four years.
The 2008 memo written by a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) meat hygiene supervisor at the Brooks, Alta., plant, obtained by CTV, instructed CFIA inspectors stationed at one of the plant鈥檚 final inspection stops to give extra scrutiny to carcasses shipped to Japan, but to ignore visible fecal and intestinal contamination on meat for Canadians.
鈥淥ur number 1 priority is to ensure this standard is met with Japan eligible carcasses,鈥� the memo said of the inspection station.
鈥淓nsure that non-Japan-eligible carcasses are not inspected for spinal cord/dura-mater, OCD (other carcass defects) and minor ingesta,鈥� the note continued. 鈥淚gnore them.鈥�
The union representing workers at the Brooks plant says this practice is 鈥渞idiculous.鈥�
鈥淭丑别re鈥檚 one standard for beef being shipped to Japan and there鈥檚 another standard for beef being shipped elsewhere,鈥� said Doug O鈥橦alloran, president of United Food & Commercial Workers Local 401. 鈥淚t is incredible that you could allow material to leave the plant that could have contamination on it just because it鈥檚 not going to Japan.
鈥淣o disrespect to Japan, but what about the rest of the human beings in the world? It鈥檚 like we鈥檙e second class citizens,鈥� he said.
The memo -- dated Sept. 12, 2008 -- was sent to CFIA inspection staff at the Brooks, Alta., plant and was re-issued to them again in 2010 and 2011.
The CFIA memo added that the contaminants can be detected later on in the meat-processing process, something with which the union representing CFIA inspectors disagree.
鈥淲hat (the CFIA memo) is saying is that for non-Japan-destined carcasses, don鈥檛 worry about seeing minor defects and that the problem will be picked up later on,鈥� Agriculture Union president Bob Kingston. 鈥淏ut the problem with that is it鈥檚 at the end of the inspection line. If it鈥檚 not dealt with there, nobody is going to.鈥�
CFIA management says meat products in Canada are safe to consume and insists feces and intestine splatter were being caught.
鈥淚f by chance it passes through that point, there are other steps beyond that which we call intervention which will take care of these particular things like remnants of organs and feces,鈥� said Dr. Harpreet Kochhar, CFIA鈥檚 executive director of western operations.
鈥淭丑别re is a de-contamination shower and then further to that, there are anti-microbial sprays鈥� that carcasses go through, Kochhar said.
But the showers, front-line inspectors say, only remove non-visible bacteria and will not remove feces and intestine splatter.
Beef carcasses contaminated with fecal and intestinal matter can also carry E. coli.
A senior CFIA official -- who requested anonymity -- told 麻豆影视 the high-speed lines should have been stopped immediately. 鈥淎ny visible contamination is required to be trimmed off,鈥� the official said. 鈥淚t is not allowed to be washed off.鈥�
NDP鈥檚 agriculture critic says the CFIA memo puts Canadians鈥� lives in danger.
鈥淲hen you ignore the standard and allow that type of material to contaminate beef and go past the final inspection station, you put Canadians鈥� health at risk,鈥� Malcolm Allen said. 鈥淭o find out it was indeed a directive -- and not just a question of someone鈥檚 willfulness or was lazy and didn鈥檛 bother to do it -- but they were directed to ignore it, that is an indictment of the system and the leadership of CIFA.鈥�
O鈥橦alloran with the plant鈥檚 union agrees: 鈥淭丑别re鈥檚 no reason for fecal matter to be on the beef once it leaves the kill floor. It should be completely non-contaminated. . . . For CFIA to say that we鈥檒l catch it down the line, it鈥檚 ridiculous.
鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about actions here that are criminal in nature because they could affect people who eat product to die,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his was criminal on what they were allowed to happen.鈥�
New memo issued
CFIA issued a new memo two weeks ago no longer telling their inspectors who spot contaminants on the production station to 鈥渋gnore it.鈥�
鈥淚nform QA and/or Production for ingesta identified,鈥� read the new instructions, dated Nov. 16. 鈥淚f no one is available production would have to be halted to have the defect removed.鈥�
Agency management says the revised memo was 鈥渕ore prescriptive鈥� and was written to ensure 鈥渢here is no confusion.鈥�
鈥淭hat was something that was brought to our attention that there might be a confusion,鈥� Kochhar said of the previous note. 鈥淲e had to re-write it because we had to provide more clarity.鈥�
XL Foods was involved in a massive meat recall prompted by an E. coli scare at its Brooks, Alta., plant. A strain of the bacteria linked to XL has made 18 people in four provinces sick, the Public Health Agency of Canada said.
The United States, Taiwan and Hong Kong imposed restrictions on beef imports from the XL Foods plant immediately following the E. coli scare.
Last month, JBS USA, a subsidiary of a Brazilian-based company that calls itself the largest animal protein processor in the world, took over management of the plant.
Responding to the CTV report Thursday, the CFIA said the memo was misunderstood, and the instructions regarding both the Japan-bound meat and the non-Japan-eligible carcasses simply referenced a 鈥渄ivision of labour鈥� related to tasks at the XL Foods plant.
鈥淭丑别 CFIA ensures that the same stringent food safety standards are applied to domestic and exported products. This was the case four years ago and it remains true today,鈥� a statement issued Thursday read. 鈥淲ithin meat plants, there are specific inspection tasks conducted at various stations and production points in production. The memo referenced simply emphasized this division of labour.鈥�
Meanwhile, federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz 鈥� who is responsible for CFIA oversight -- came under a barrage of criticism during question period Thursday, as opposition MPs accused him of willful negligence and some demanded his replacement. For his part, Ritz insisted food safety was never at risk.
