|
TEESWATER, ONTARIO – The Ontario government needs to wake up and
provide more resources to the provincial meat inspection system to avoid a major
public health incident, the union representing provincial meat inspectors says.
“The provincial meat inspection system saw big improvements
after 2003, but now we’re slipping backwards,” says Bob Lowry, president of
Local 211 of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union and elected leader of
the 160 meat inspectors the union represents. “We need more resources now if we
don’t want another meat-related public health disaster on our hands.”
Lowry issued the warning on the eve of the 2008 International
Plowing Match which begins Tuesday in Teeswater, Ont. The annual event attracts
more than 100,000 visitors and OPSEU’s meat hygiene officers will operate an
information booth at the Match.
The provincial meat inspection system falls under the Ontario
Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). About 15 per cent of
the meat consumed in Ontario is slaughtered in provincially-inspected plants.
Since the 2004 report of Justice Roland Haines, the province has
begun bringing hundreds of further processing (FP) plants under provincial
inspection.
“Right now, OMAFRA inspects 155 slaughterhouses and 315 FP
plants,” said Lowry. “On Oct. 1, another 120 FP plants will be added, but at
this point no inspectors for these plants have been hired.”
The government must remove bureaucratic barriers to new hiring
so it can increase front-line inspection staff by at least 50 per cent, Lowry
said. He also pointed to several other safety problems that put public health at
risk:
-
OMAFRA inspectors do not test for BSE (Mad Cow) in
slaughterhouses;
-
OMAFRA inspectors do not do swab-testing of equipment in
cutting rooms and processing plants to check for listeria, E. coli, and
other contaminants;
-
OMAFRA inspectors do not do random sampling and testing of
ready-to-eat foods as they come off the production line.
OPSEU is calling on Ag minister Leona Dombrowsky to approve the
hiring of 12 Senior Inspectors to assist overworked Area Managers, as
recommended by Justice Haines.
“You can’t work managers 60 hours a week in a high-stress
environment and expect them to stay on top of the work,” Lowry said. “We need
those Senior Inspectors, and we need them now.”
|
 |
|
|
|
For more information:
Bob Lowry (905) 394-1245;
Greg Hamara (647) 238-9933
 Print this page
|
Photos:
OPSEU Local 211 President Bob Lowry talking with members of the public at the
2008 International Plowing Match in Teeswater, Ontario.
(Click photos to see larger images)
News by Email
Yes, I would like to
receive OPSEU News by email
|
