Posts tagged as:

food safety

Canada’s Food News – Listeriosis, Wal-Mart and more

July 24, 2009 by Mike Soron

A new study from World Action on Salt and Health shows that global food brands contain more salt when sold in Canada compared to elsewhere: “The fact that companies distribute products with so much less salt in some countries raises serious ethical concerns. It is very hypocritical for manufacturers to make healthy claims about their [...]

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Two reports, one committee: a public inquiry into listeriosis and the CFIA

June 23, 2009 by Mike Soron

“Twenty-two people died in this country. That cannot be swept under the rug.”
- Wayne Easter on June 18, 2009

The listeria crisis from last year just isn’t going away. Rightfully so. Hundreds became ill and 22 Canadians died. The Conservative government’s response has been appallingly unmanaged and disrespectful. Now, they are pushing against a closer look [...]

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Journalists slap the fatally silent Canadian Food Inspection Agency

May 25, 2009 by Mike Soron

This is not welcome news for one of Canada’s most important public bodies.
The Canadian Association of Journalists [CAJ] has given the Canadian Food Inspection Agency [CFIA] it’s 2008 Code of Silence Award for the agency’s efforts to conceal from the public information about fatal failures in food safety.
The award announcement noted CFIA’s struggle to delay [...]

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Are we fetishizing food at the expense of our health, safety, and security?

Thumbnail image for Are we fetishizing food at the expense of our health, safety, and security? February 26, 2009 by Mike Soron

Is our obsession with an elitist food culture causing harm to our food security and safety, while malnutrition and hunger quietly persist?

There is a rampant fetishization of food and cooking in our society. We are obsessed with glamourizing cooking and restaurant shows on cable TV. We crave disturbingly expensive cooking equipment and glossy, leather-bound cook [...]

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More on food safety cuts and industry self-regulation

February 6, 2009 by Ryan Slifka

Have you ever heard the phrase, “it’s like letting the fox watch the henhouse”?
Rarely has the phrase been so apt as in the government of Canada’s new proposed food inspection rules. Industry (the fox) could take a much larger role in inspecting their own products (the henhouse). According to a quietly circulated document the government [...]

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Raw milk on trial in Ontario

January 28, 2009 by Ryan Slifka

Michael Schmidt, a farmer from near Durham Ontario, has been in and out of court over the past fifteen years due to the fact that he has been selling unpasteurized milk products, including most recently raw milk cheese. Schmidt now faces 20 charges for violating the Ontario Milk Act by selling raw milk cheese to [...]

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Investigation into listeriosis outbreak hits early criticism

January 22, 2009 by Mike Soron

Perhaps you recall the listeriosis outbreak in Canada last year. The outbreak, connected to Maple Leaf Foods, was responsible for twenty deaths and 53 confirmed cases of listeriosis.
Gerry Ritz, some jackass Tory MP for Battlefords-Lloydminster, was reappointed Agriculture Minister by the government despite doing an appallingly irresponsible job managing the crisis. He was quoted [...]

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