Crackdown on Canadian meat businesses
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) cancelled three Safe Food for Canadian licences of Onatario-based Ryding-Regency Meat Packers Ltd., Canadian Select Meats Inc. (operating under St. Ann's Foods Inc) and The Beef Boutique Ltd. (operating under St. Ann's Foods Inc).
In a statement, the CFIA said the decision was made after it identified that it had received false or misleading information from the licence holders concerning E. coli lab results leading to an investigation into the businesses.
Effective immediately, the three businesses are no longer able to slaughter food animals or prepare meat products for export or to be sent from one province or territory to another.
CFIA initiated a food safety investigation into the three companies in September 2019, as soon as it was determined that some products were potentially contaminated. Prior to the cancellations, the licences for the establishments were all suspended to ensure the safety of the public.
There were almost 900 food recalls associated with this investigation related to E. coli O157:H7 in various beef and veal products. No additional recalls are expected in respect of this investigation.
