Food safety agency allowing producers to police themselves: ex-inspector
27.08.2008 18:01
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- Source: cbc.ca
 Bob Kingston, a former inspector with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and now a union head, says food producers are increasingly taking on inspection duties.(CBC)Federal inspectors are spending less time on the factory floor and relying more on food producers to monitor themselves, the head of the union for federal food safety inspectors said Wednesday. Since March 31, food producers have been conducting their own tests for bacteria such as Listeria monocytogenes, and writing their own food safety reports, Bob Kingston, president of the Agriculture Union of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, told the CBC's Susan Bonner. Canadian Food Inspection Agency inspectors have since had to deal with significantly more paperwork, which reduces their awareness of the everyday goings-on at meat-packing and processing facilities, said Kingston, formerly an inspector with the CFIA. "The biggest concern from the [CFIA] inspection staff is simply the amount of time now they spend looking at reports and generating reports," said Kingston. "And all of that means time off of the production floor." Not enough attention was given to how the transition to the new procedures would affect the food inspection process, said Kingston. "Basically there is a transition period where you know that things are going to be a little touch and go, and there probably should have been more resources put into the program, at least until there had been enough time to see how it worked." A spokesman for the CFIA based in Ottawa wouldn't provide comment, but the agency has a news conference planned for later Wednesday. Listeriosis has led to 15 deathsHis comments come in the wake of a massive meat recall caused by an outbreak of listeriosis that has so far led to the deaths of 15 people across Canada. At the Maple Leaf Foods plant at the centre of the outbreak, the sole inspector overseeing the plant's health guidelines was left sifting through paperwork, said Kingston and the manager of the plant in an interview with the Globe and Mail on Tuesday. Inspectors are now instructed more rigorously on how to spend their day, said Kingston. "So it means they don't get to go to the place where they know there is the highest risk in plant, for instance, unless it happens to be on that schedule for the day," he said. "It worries me that inspectors are reporting that they don't have the comfort level they once had." Conservatives yet to reveal future food rulesA secret cabinet document leaked last month suggested the federal Conservatives want to hand over more inspection duties to industry as a part of future reforms. The Tories, who haven't yet legislated any changes in food inspection policy, have not confirmed what their plans for reform would be. They also haven't indicated that any changes have been made, besides hiring 200 new federal inspectors since their government took power in January 2006. Prime Minister Stephen Harper told reporters Tuesday the food rules were in need of a "reform and revamp" after "some years of neglect." Critics have increasingly voiced their concerns federal Conservatives' plans for food inspection reform. Ontario Health Minister David Caplan said Tuesday he is concerned by the Tories' plan to shift more responsibility for food inspection to producers. Last week, Liberal Leader Stphane Dion and Liberal agriculture critic Wayne Easter criticized the Tories for the possible changes, with Easter accusing the Tories of downloading responsibility for food inspection onto industry as a "cost-saving measure." RelatedInternal LinksListeria FAQsMeat recall timelineOnt. concerned over federal plans for national food tracking systemVideo CBC's Susan Bonner interviews Bob Kingston, a former inspector with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (Runs: 5:08)Play: QuickTime »Play: Real Media »External LinksThe Canadian Food Inspection Agency's expanded recall noticeThe Canadian Food Inspection Agency's Safeway and TakeAwayCaf brand recall listMaple Leaf Foods updated recall listCanadian Food Inspection Agency: Listeria(Note: CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external sites - links will open in new window) Consumer HeadlinesFood safety agency allowing producers to police themselves: ex-inspectorFederal inspectors are spending less time on the factory floor and relying more on food producers to monitor themselves, the head of the union for federal food safety inspectors said Wednesday.Canadian gas prices aren't so bad, industry expert insistsWhile Canadians complain about the soaring price of gasoline at the pumps, oil industry experts say people in this country are actually paying the second-lowest prices in the Western world.Recall over listeriosis fears expands to 4 more productsFour more ready-made sandwich brands were added early Tuesday to a massive voluntary meat recall in connection with a deadly listeriosis outbreak across Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said. 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