XL Foods Announces Temporary Layoffs

[cpallett]

EDMONTON, Oct. 13, 2012 /CNW/ - XL Foods Inc. announced the temporary layoff of approximately 2,000 employees at the Brooks, Alberta facility today.

"It is with deep regret we have announced the temporary layoff of 2,000 employees today. For the past three weeks employees have received full pay on their 32 hour weekly guarantee with few scheduled shifts available. We have paid our valued team members out of a commitment to our workforce and to assist them through this difficult time." said Brian Nilsson, Co-CEO of XL Foods.

XL Foods has worked with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency ("CFIA") through the issuance of a temporary license to demonstrate the implementation of enhanced protocols. CFIA has not provided a definitive timeline for relicensing of the Brooks, Alberta facility. It is this uncertainty that has forced the temporary layoffs. We look forward to actively working with the CFIA to bring this to a viable and timely resolution to allow the plant to recommence operations.

Brian Nilsson reinforced "XL Foods is committed to the best interests of the cattle industry, our employees, the city of Brooks and all affected by the idling of the Brooks facility. We are hopeful that the CFIA will bring this to a swift and viable resolution."

XL Foods appreciates the dedication and effort that all team members have demonstrated throughout this stressful time. The return to work for our employees and the processing of cattle for the Western Canadian beef industry will remain our top priority.

SOURCE: XL Foods Inc.

[ASRG]

A little pressure for the CFIA?
I don't blame NB....pretty hard to pay out a $120K a week payroll when nothing is coming in?
Maybe CFIA should get off their duffs? If the plant is clean and the "gold standard" regulations are in place....get it open! I really doubt any of the CFIA beurocrats are working on the weekend and I'll bet they took off the long weekend as well.

[wilagro]

Putting the onus on the CFIA to set a timeline for opening the plant is a nice diversion. Nilsson's still don't get it...THEY alone are responsible for the delaying of the re-opening of the plant. It was their filthy mess that started the whole unfortunate shut-down.

They are now allowed to work on those 5,000 carcasses in the plant. Get those inspected and disposed of and maybe, just maybe the plant will get the go-ahead for more killing. Nilsson, et al dropped the ball now it is time for them to show that they can play the game according to the rules.

I feel NO sympathy or empathy for them whatsoever. If the "line" has to run at half-speed for the next while...so-be-it, maybe they'll learn something from the experience. Those "nice platitudes" mouthed by Brian are just PR bull****, time to see some positive action on maintaining proper procedures and protocols.

[wmoebis]

Would be a good time Monday morning for Ritz, CFIA, NB and union to put on an open town all meeting in Brooks. To answer employees/people concerns.

Would bet not one is man enough to show up. LOL

[cpallett]

Wrong wilagro, wrong. The reason that the plant has not opened yet is that the CFIA has not provided NB with the list of things that they must do to achieve compliance. Tough to do what the regulator tells you must be done to achieve compliance when the regulator itself cannot figure out what it wants you to do.

NB no doubt contributed to the problem in the first place, but the failure to solve the problem now rests wholly with the CFIA.

As for the carcasses in the chillers, my info is that the CFIA is taking so long trying to figure out what it will take to allow them to be boxed and shipped that NB has decided to render the whole lot. World's safest and tastiest dog food coming up.

It beats me why anyone would try to make a go of it in this screwed-up regulatory environment. Randall, you may want to make a note of that and wait for a change in government.

[grassfarmer]

Cameron, I understand your distaste for CFIA from
previous dealings with them but someone is not
telling the truth here. Brian Nilsson made a statement
3 days ago that they had met all the requirements set
for them by CFIA. Here is the press release:

http://www.globalnews.ca/entertainment/health/xl f
oods says safety problems fixed at alberta beef
plant regrets illnesses/6442730403/story.html

Now you are saying that they are forced to lay off
workers because they have not even been told what
to correct yet?
Laying off workers after heroically paying their wages
for 3 weeks while they weren't working - well actually
the license was pulled on Sept 27th so that's only 16
days ago total - including 5 weekend days and a bank
holiday. Presumably they weren't working 7 days a
week?
Probably just using the workforce as pawns like they
did at Moose Jaw.
The "poor little XL" card gets no sympathy from me
and I'm sure many other ranchers.

[cpallett]

Read for content, Iain.

"The owners of the Alberta plant involved in the massive recall of beef products says it has fixed all the problems that forced food safety officials to shut it down."

"Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says the pre-inspection is only the first of a multi-stage process XL Foods must go through before it will be allowed to resume operating and no date has been set for it to reopen."

CFIA has yet to come up with the rest of the requirements in the "multi-stage process". Tough to meet requirements when you have not yet been told what they are. Those with strong psychic powers please apply.

NB screwed up initially, of that I have no doubt. However, the CFIA has now taken over the screw-up department.

When you next read that the carcasses have been rendered, perhaps you will share your explanation why NB would throw away that much money for no apparent reason? Insurance? Love of pets?

I am neither an NB apologist nor an anti-CFIA fanatic, but the whole truth is the best basis to motivate positive change IMHO.

Four years after the CFIA brought in their new Compliance Verification System (CVS), only a small fraction of the inspectors at Brooks were trained in CVS. There was no communication plan in place to alert inspectors at other stations of a positive test so that they could institute proper procedures.

NB gave the CFIA a list of some 1,800 recalled products. CFIA announced them in bits and pieces over 5 days apparently to make it look like they were vigilantly discovering more problems as their investigation progressed. Never mind the reputational damage to NB.

I can protect myself against NB (and Cargill for that matter) by buying locally (which I do - no offense but I prefer barley-fed beef). How can I protect myself and my family against the CFIA?

You take on the NBs of the world, and more power to you. My task is likely far more futile - bring accountability to the regulator.

semper ad meliora

[grassfarmer]

If it's impossible to run a plant to CFIA standards as
you claim how do Cargill manage at High River and in
Ontario? how does the upstart Canadian Premium
Meats at Lacombe manage? - they built a plant with
their own money and are meeting tough EU import
standards.

[cpallett]

Iain for God's sake please open your ears. The CFIA has not yet provided NB with their requirements to reopen Lakeside. That's it. That's all.

Where in God's gracious name does the rest of your diatribe come from?

[perfecho]

Doubt that management or any of the Nilsson's are taking any wage reductions.....just like the cattle producers.....the ones least to blame are the most effected.

[grassfarmer]

Who are we to listen to though Cameron? I don't have
an inside connection with Nilssons but in that link I
posted Brian Nilsson stated they "had completed all
the corrective actions the agency requested" and
"fixed all the problems that forced food safety
officials to shut it down."
On the TV news tonight they said the results of the
pre-inspection were to be announced as early as
tomorrow.
So if you've done all the work that was asked of you
in terms of compliance as he claims why lay off the
workers before the outcome is known?
Something sounds fishy to me.
You are the only person I've heard mention that CFIA
hasn't spelled out the requirements yet.

[SheriMonk]

They haven't spelled out anything.
They talk about a next stage, but don't say what it
is, or how or when it will be rolled out.

(Working on an article right now.)

There was some E. coli at the plant, yes. An initial
recall, yes. And then about a week into it, the whole
thing went off the rails, and that runaway train is
still going.

When it comes to this issue, everyone needs to
separate their personal feelings about the Nilssons
from what appears to be some very bizarre
circumstances surrounding this recall.

The bottom line here is that if this was mishandled,
if the recall isn't science-based, or if the CFIA
bungled this, as an industry and as a nation, we
need to know how, and why.

Having covered the contaminated feed wreck the
CFIA presided over in 2007 and knowing Cam's
statement of claim... let's just say I strongly doubt
that E. coli was the biggest problem in that plant.

[cpallett]

Iain you will, as always, believe whatever you choose to believe. As Polonius said:

This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.

Yup, NB "completed all the corrective actions requested" and then were told that more 'corrections' were likely to be requested following the pre-inspection. Details from the CFIA to follow. Timeline unknown.

So, at the end of the pay period NB laid off the workforce rather than pay them to sit on their hands with no end in sight. Given that the plant has been closed for two weeks now one might expect the CFIA to have a handle on the full gambit of corrective measures they require in order to reopen the plant, but apparently they do not.

Perhaps the CFIA are waiting for the Americans to tell them what further corrective measures might be required when they do their audit. I don't know. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

As usual the working stiffs get the dirty end of the stick.

[mcfarms]

CFIA is claiming on the calgary herald website that XL halted the line halfway through the 5000 head.

Oh god what a cluster....
I'd like to believe someones going to be held responsible for this mess, but I know who'll be paying for it.
(neither the feds/cfia or XL)

[SheriMonk]

These USDA inspections have been in the works for
some time now, and if I am a healthy-functioning
food inspection agency, I'd really want this plant up
and running to show that I know how to handle a
recall, how to inspect a plant, and how to ensure a
plant is in safe working order.

Having your largest plant sit idle as the domestic
cattle business slides off a cliff is not a feather in
anyone's cap.

Analyzing the number of illness per million pounds
of recalled beef reveals how overreaching this recall
truly is.

This one recall is more worthy of an X-Files episode
than all the cattle mutilations and crop circles put
together.