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XL Foods Ltd had caused a storm of controversy on the weekend when it laid off all 2,000 employees in what appears to have been a standoff with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) over plans to restart the Brooks, Alta. plant. But late Sunday, XL said it would recall 800 of those workers in order to do the processing work necessary for the agency to re-certify it.
More Related to this Story
•Inspections at E. coli-affected plant grind to a halt with layoffs
•XL owners giants in the beef business
•LAKESIDE SLAUGHTERHOUSE Can meat factories be safe, at 4,000 cows a day, 3,000 steaks a minute?
Recent outbreak of E. coli at Brooks, Alta. plant XL Foods sparks public interest in what can be done to prevent contamination. E. coli, a strain of which can cause sickness or even death, is widely present in meat-processing plants, and regulators require packers to control the bacteria within certain levels. E. coli can be killed by thoroughly cooking meat. REUTERS
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Video: Avoiding E. coli contamination in food
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks to supporters as he attends a BBQ in Caribou Crossing, Aug. 20, 2012. The Canadian Press
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Video: Could the XL Foods crisis hurt Harper?
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“We look forward to actively working with CFIA to bring this to a viable and timely resolution to allow the plant to recommence operations,” Brian Nilsson, XL Foods’ co-chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Earlier on the weekend, Mr. Nilsson said the company had no choice but to shut down, blaming inspection agency for refusing to provide a firm date when it could begin shipping product even as it was expected to operate the plant under heavy monitoring from federal inspectors. For its part, the CFIA said it could not set a date for the resumption of commercial operations until it could be sure that the company could operate problem-free.
At a news conference in Brooks, Alberta Agriculture Minister Verlyn Olson said he had spoken to Mr. Nilsson on Sunday morning and had stressed the importance of getting employees back into the plant to do the work needed to satisfy the federal inspectors.
“The CFIA is saying they need a certain amount of sampling to be done and if all the workers go home that would interfere with that,” Mr. Olson said. “So it sounds like we’re back on the rails in terms of the action being taken that will ultimately lead to re-certification of the plant.”
The layoffs on Saturday came as the food inspectors were half way through assessment of XL’s processing of 5,100 beef carcasses that were already stored in the facility. From there, the agency intended to monitor the slaughter of live cattle and processing before being prepared to issue a certificate.
Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz called the decision to close down a “business decision” and expressed concern for the workers and the community of Brooks, a city of nearly 14,000 in southeastern Alberta.
In a statement late Sunday, Mr. Ritz said he was pleased with XL Foods’ decision to continue with the food safety review.
“Consumer confidence is critical for Canada’s beef industry, and that’s why we won’t compromise when it comes to the safety of Canadians’ food,” he said.
The XL Food plant slaughters and processes nearly a third of Canada’s cattle, and its closure has inflicted big losses on western ranchers.
Its licence was suspended on Sept. 27 after several Canadians got E.coli poisoning from meat shipped from the plant, and inspectors determine its food safety were inadequate. The CFIA followed up with the largest meat recall in Canadian history
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XL Foods Ltd had caused a storm of controversy on the weekend when it laid off all 2,000 employees in what appears to have been a standoff with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) over plans to restart the Brooks, Alta. plant. But late Sunday, XL said it would recall 800 of those workers in order to do the processing work necessary for the agency to re-certify it.
More Related to this Story
•Inspections at E. coli-affected plant grind to a halt with layoffs
•XL owners giants in the beef business
•LAKESIDE SLAUGHTERHOUSE Can meat factories be safe, at 4,000 cows a day, 3,000 steaks a minute?
Recent outbreak of E. coli at Brooks, Alta. plant XL Foods sparks public interest in what can be done to prevent contamination. E. coli, a strain of which can cause sickness or even death, is widely present in meat-processing plants, and regulators require packers to control the bacteria within certain levels. E. coli can be killed by thoroughly cooking meat. REUTERS
video
Video: Avoiding E. coli contamination in food
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks to supporters as he attends a BBQ in Caribou Crossing, Aug. 20, 2012. The Canadian Press
video
Video: Could the XL Foods crisis hurt Harper?
video
Video: Minister should be held responsible for beef recall, Mulcair says
“We look forward to actively working with CFIA to bring this to a viable and timely resolution to allow the plant to recommence operations,” Brian Nilsson, XL Foods’ co-chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Earlier on the weekend, Mr. Nilsson said the company had no choice but to shut down, blaming inspection agency for refusing to provide a firm date when it could begin shipping product even as it was expected to operate the plant under heavy monitoring from federal inspectors. For its part, the CFIA said it could not set a date for the resumption of commercial operations until it could be sure that the company could operate problem-free.
At a news conference in Brooks, Alberta Agriculture Minister Verlyn Olson said he had spoken to Mr. Nilsson on Sunday morning and had stressed the importance of getting employees back into the plant to do the work needed to satisfy the federal inspectors.
“The CFIA is saying they need a certain amount of sampling to be done and if all the workers go home that would interfere with that,” Mr. Olson said. “So it sounds like we’re back on the rails in terms of the action being taken that will ultimately lead to re-certification of the plant.”
The layoffs on Saturday came as the food inspectors were half way through assessment of XL’s processing of 5,100 beef carcasses that were already stored in the facility. From there, the agency intended to monitor the slaughter of live cattle and processing before being prepared to issue a certificate.
Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz called the decision to close down a “business decision” and expressed concern for the workers and the community of Brooks, a city of nearly 14,000 in southeastern Alberta.
In a statement late Sunday, Mr. Ritz said he was pleased with XL Foods’ decision to continue with the food safety review.
“Consumer confidence is critical for Canada’s beef industry, and that’s why we won’t compromise when it comes to the safety of Canadians’ food,” he said.
The XL Food plant slaughters and processes nearly a third of Canada’s cattle, and its closure has inflicted big losses on western ranchers.
Its licence was suspended on Sept. 27 after several Canadians got E.coli poisoning from meat shipped from the plant, and inspectors determine its food safety were inadequate. The CFIA followed up with the largest meat recall in Canadian history
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