TORONTO — Spraying hot water on beef trimmings for 40 seconds has proven to be another way to get rid of dangerous bacteria such as E. coli 0157:H7. Alberta Agriculture meat scientists wondered what the treatment, known as pasteurization, does to the taste and smell of ground beef. Carcasses have smooth surfaces and are subjected […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Reliance on food safety at processing problematic: official
Europe takes on-farm approach North America may need to adjust processing systems and technologies to meet European trade requirements
TORONTO — The approaches to food safety in North America and Europe are as different as night and day. Europeans believe in tackling the problem at the farm, while North Americans try to remove risks at the final processing stage, said Keith Warriner of the University of Guelph’s food science department. “Europe puts a lot […] Read moreTraceability service gets boost from feds
A single national database that houses livestock and poultry information has received a $7.5 million injection from the Canadian government. Canadian Agri-Traceability Services was created in 2012 to combine the animal identification information of the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency and Agri-Tracabilite Quebec to reduce costs and make data reporting simpler. Its system, Trace Canada, is […] Read more
New food, new places lead to new parasites
Difficult to diagnose | Parasites survive a long time in food and the environment and can cause severe sickness and death
TORONTO — Canadians do not usually get parasites. However, the risk of picking them up and getting a mild to severe illness increases as people travel more and eat different foods. “In Canada we are fairly fortunate, they are not known to occur here,” said Alvin Gajadhar, a parasitologist at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. […] Read more
Eat, drink and everyone’s merry
TORONTO — A glass of wine served with a savoury steak at a high class resort has turned into a winning partnership. Karisma Resorts, Air Canada Vacations, Jackson Family Wines and Canada Beef have worked together for the last year to create special vacation experiences. Karisma Resorts, which owns all-inclusive properties in Mexico, Latin America […] Read more
Fifth PED case found in Manitoba
Investigators search for source | Biosecurity lapses can have deadly consequences for barns
Manitoba has confirmed its fifth case of porcine epidemic diarrhea, this one in southeastern Manitoba beyond the five-kilometre buffer zone of the last two farms with positive diagnoses. Investigators are trying to determine the source of the disease at each of the three new sites. “The producers that are affected are really doing nothing much […] Read moreMost consumers willing to accept irradiated food, says advocate
Irradiated food should be a matter of consumer choice, says an advocate for the technology. Ruth Brinston has spent her career studying and promoting the benefits of radiation processing for food and sterilizing medical supplies. As president of Biovive Consulting, which specializes in irradiation technology, she believes using a controlled amount of energy called ionizing […] Read more
U.S. plans revisions to beef grading system
TORONTO — Significant changes in the beef industry have prompted the United States to consider revising its grading system, but Canada is not following suit. “Often there are suggestions for different improvements. Currently there is nothing proposed,” said Dave Solverson, president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. “Our grading system is more specific than the U.S. […] Read more
Officials testing how long virus can survive
Manitoba Pork wants to know how long the porcine epidemic diarrhea virus can survive adverse conditions. It is working with the Manitoba Livestock Manure Initiative and the provincial agriculture ministry to collect manure samples and assess how long the virus can survive in a lagoon and if it is capable of infecting pigs. About 600 […] Read more
Transportation points key to PED control
Porcine epidemic diarrhea | While Canada has successfully managed the virus so far, fall brings increased risk of infection
TORONTO — The porcine epidemic diarrhea virus can travel on its own in the air for 15 kilometres, but human transport is the more likely carrier. Manure application companies and trucks that deliver feed and haul hogs to market can carry the potentially fatal disease from farm to farm. “Transportation is a high risk for […] Read more
