Debate on XL

[kato]

They're starting to interview employees now. Interesting stuff coming out of there. What they're saying is production is the primary objective, and anything that slows it down is absolutely not wanted. That includes little details like sterilizing knives, slowing down the line if there's a problem, or taking the time it takes to clean thoroughly.

It's a culture of "put 'em through and make some money, and don't let anything get in the way".

Well, things are getting in they way now, aren't they???

[ASRG]

The packing industry claims there is a very thin margin in the business....something like 1%?
I don't know if this is true or not, but if it is, then yes production has to be paramount or they are out of business.
Does XL run the line speed faster than other packers? Does the CFIA have one set of rules for XL and another for Cargill or other federal packers?
The smaller provincial packers charge a pretty high price for custom kill....if the big plants had those kind of costs they would be broke.
If XL was breaking all the rules why didn't the CFIA shut them down?

A corporations job is to maximize profits for the shareholders/owners....a regulators job is to make sure all the rules are followed.

Who wasn't doing their job? In my mind CFIA dropped the ball.

[riders2010]

So if someone is pointing a gun at a teller robbing a bank, the police outside have to request a letter from the robber stating what exactly they are doing in the bank? Is that the police fault or the idiot that made the rule they have to request the letter? Ridiculous. Not defending cfia because I think there is going to be a whole lot more come of this.

What is to say this is not happenning at other plants?

[ASRG]

rider: You might be completely right. Maybe the CFIA was just following the rules as laid out by the government?
At the end of the day the buck has to stop somewhere.....and that would be on the desk of the Agriculture Minister?
However, if you listen to Gerry Ritz in question period, or in his so called press conference, he claims the CFIA is basically an independent professional outfit that calls all the shots!
I suspect if the CFIA had enforced all the rules to the exact letter, Ritz would have got a call from the boys at XL....and he would have been on the horn to the CFIA reading them the riot act to ease up!
When corporations and politicians get into bed with each other....it usually doesn't turn out well for the public!

[wmoebis]

If rotten smells coming out of drains
and plugged nozzles on wash hoses are
missed, no wonder they can't detect
bacteria's.

I wonder what training the plant
inspectors have? Are they required to
have the same training as CFIA
inspectors since they are doing their
job? How many planet employee inspectors
are on staff doing the job of 46 CFIA
inspectors?

[ASRG]

You would think after the 2008 Maple Leaf listeria wreck meaningful changes would have been made...after all many Canadians died?
I have no idea how meat inspection works in Canada. Perhaps there needs to be an truly independent commission set up to look into meat inspection and food safety?
Somewhere along the line someone dropped the ball. We all pay for it, through lower prices for our cattle and higher prices at the meat counter.
If we consider the 2003 BSE wreck as an example......who dropped the ball? Who paid for it?
The government dropped the ball...they failed to implement safeguards they knew were necessary. The Canadian cattleman paid the price. Some went broke because the government didn't do their job.....all of us lost major equity?
The government refuses to assume accountability for their negligence for BSE......why would they assume accountability now? We will get lies and spin.....and then it will be business as usual!

[grassfarmer]

I remember during the last labor dispute and lockout
at Brooks one of the workers complaints was that
they were only allowed to take scheduled bathroom
breaks - if someone had the sudden need to go they
had to remain in the production resulting in soiled
underwear being dropped in the garbage at the end
of every shift. Isn't that a great idea for food safety? -
having disgruntled workers crapping their pants and
being forced to keep on working like that.

I remember too during the BSE crisis the NFU
complaints of the dire situation ranchers were in
being refuted by minister Ritz - he said he had
spoken to his friend Brian Nilsson who had assured
him things were OK. Alright for who though? not hard
to see who is in bed with who here.

[littledoggie]

I can see that this conservative government would be reluctant to accept accountability for the BSE crises, because the negligence was caused by the liberals in power at the time.
But the accountability for this debacle falls on them. If the CFIA is an independent body, perhaps a few bureaubrats were bought off?

[rkaiser]

Crazy weekend in the retail game in Calgary. Opening our new Second to None Meats store in Willow Park Mall next Tuesday and having people rap on the window asking if our beef is "safe". Our two locations at Mission and McLeod are doing record sales. Partly the Thanksgiving turkey/ham thing however.

And guess which Natural branded product is being promoted in the local Safeway and other retail superstores this weekend. That's right --- Spring Creek Ranch beef. Partially owned and processed by the now infamous NB XL beef boys.... LOL Any way to make a buck eh.... what a wacked out world.

And to top it off, as the producers now sees his income drop once again, the big retail boys are increasing beef prices at the store because of reduced supply... In their words.

Does anyone reading this still think we need to support the "status quo"?

[loric]

My two cents. This story has become too big with
too many tentacles for it to turn around. There is
too much out there and the media doesn't know
who to speak to anymore as there are a million
spokespeople saying different things.

There should have been a compassionate
statement the day this happened. There should
have been a face to the story...not a picture of a
packing plant from the outside.

Because communications people did not act fast
enough, this is going to are a long while to get
over.