VANCOUVER – When pets and their owners started to get sick, the cause was traced to improperly processed dog treats containing salmonella.
That is one of many food recalls that public health inspectors have been involved with in recent years, says a British Columbia public health inspector.
Food recalls can be costly and time consuming and yet they are increasing every year, said Shendra Brisdon, who works for the Fraser Health Authority in Surrey.
Most of the developed world is moving toward national food traceability, which Brisdon said should have happened sooner because food is shipped all over the world.
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“We need to take responsibility for what we are producing,” she told the Canadian Meat Council’s annual meeting.
A food recall may be initiated because of bacteria, allergens such as peanuts and milk, chemicals, foreign objects such as metal, glass and plastic and improper processing and may result in lost business, damaged reputations and legal implications. In the worst case scenario there could be illness and death.
“When you have a problem with your food, people don’t forget. They know your name and they remember your product,” Brisdon said.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued 259 recalls in 2005-06. Many of the recent recalls have been related to vegetables, such as cases where crops were irrigated with polluted water and E. coli infections resulted.
In the case of the contaminated dog treats, the investigation involved authorities in Alberta, British Columbia and Washington state. Two products were produced in the United States and exported to Canada and one was produced in Canada.
Dog chews and jerkies were found to carry salmonella in February 2005 in Alberta when a dog became sick with diarrhea. At the same time pet owners became ill and an inspector linked the pet food to the food poisoning cases.
A health inspector had been involved in a similar case before and asked if the people had pets.
A search began and a Calgary laboratory found salmonella in several different kinds of treats. No owners ate the treats but they had handled them.
B.C. companies selling the treats started a voluntary recall on June 1, 2005.
The plants have since changed their processing systems.
“This was a costly lesson for them to learn,” Brisdon said.
