What progress has been made since the outbreak?

Following the 2008 outbreak, each of the key federal organizations (Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency) involved in the event prepared 'lessons learned' reports. The objective of these reports was to assess the respective organizations' performances in the outbreak, to identify any weaknesses, and to develop action plans to address these shortcomings.

At the provincial level, Ontario and British Columbia's Chief Medical Officers of Health undertook similar exercises, reporting on their provinces' management of the outbreak.

On the industry side, Maple Leaf Foods also conducted a post-outbreak review in order to learn from the event. The company contracted an international panel of experts comprising leading North American experts in Listeria control to review its operations at the Bartor Road plant. The panel was charged with identifying the probable causal factors that resulted in Maple Leaf Foods inability to control Listeria inside the plant and that consequently led to the outbreak.

Taken together, these post-outbreak reviews provide valuable lessons for the federal government, along with its food safety partners and the food processors, about how to prevent foodborne illness outbreaks, or at a minimum, to respond more effectively and efficiently when they occur.

Federal organizations involved in the outbreak were awaiting the report from the House of Commons Subcommittee on Food Safety, which was tabled in June 2009, as well as this review by the Independent Investigator before finalizing improvements to their operations.

In the interim, some of the recommendations generated by the early post-outbreak reviews have already been acted on; in other cases, improvements are in progress.

Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and Maple Leaf Foods have all developed plans that identify the work in progress to meet the recommendations set out in their lessons learned reports.

Attached as Appendix C, provides an overview of each organization's account of their progress to date since the outbreak, as shared with us. The progress is presented using the following four broad categories:

• Policies
• Surveillance and Laboratories
• Foodborne Emergency Preparedness and Response
• Food Safety

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"During the course of this investigation, we came across a number of issues which, while not the focus of this investigative review, have raised important points that merit closer examination."