Link made between listeriosis cases and contaminated deli meat

Ontario’s chief medical officer confirmed Friday a link between listeriosis cases and contaminated deli meat produced at a federally regulated meat plant – the first since Canada was rocked in the summer of 2008 with a deadly outbreak.

Arlene King said public-health officials have matched two cases of listeriosis to a genetic fingerprint from Siena Brand Prosciutto Cotto cooked ham.

Both individuals were hospitalized but have since been discharged.

The genetic fingerprint is also a match to a Siena Brand mild cacciatori salami that was recalled in December, said King, who also revealed the number of Ontarians who have fallen ill from listeriosis this year is higher than normal.

Usually, there are about 40 cases annually. To date, there have already been 14 cases reported, she said.

Ten of the 12 other cases do not appear to be related, while the other two are still pending.

King warned Ontarians not to consume these two products, manufactured by Siena Foods Ltd.

The news comes a day after the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced the recall of the Siena cooked ham for possible listeria contamination. The meat was distributed in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta.

Salami produced by Siena was also subject to another listeria recall last December, with a best before date of May 4, 2010. The salami may have been distributed nationally, according to CFIA.

The agency could not immediately say whether officials stepped up an inspection presence at the Siena plant in Toronto after the salami recall. CFIA, however, confirmed the latest cooked ham recall is based on positive test results for listeria in product samples and its own investigation of these findings.

The announcement follows an effort by the CFIA to rehabilitate its image in the wake of the August 2008 listeriosis outbreak traced back to deli meats produced at a Maple Leaf Foods facility in Toronto, also federally regulated.

Twenty-two people, most of them elderly Canadians living in provincial long-term care facilities or hospitals, died after consuming deli meats contaminated with listeria produced at the government-inspected plant.

A string of post-mortems into the Maple Leaf listeriosis outbreak showed major gaps in the oversight of Canada’s food inspection system, including the report of the independent investigator hired by Ottawa.

Sheila Weatherill singled out a "void in leadership" in Ottawa during the deadly listeriosis outbreak, after company officials and overworked meat inspectors failed to identify a persistent listeria problem at the Maple Leaf Foods plant, according to her final report, released last July.

And while no player escaped criticism in the report, Weatherill zeroed in on a "vacuum in senior leadership" among government officials at the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency that caused "confusion and weak decision-making."

Since then, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz has committed an additional $75 million to increase the number of inspectors at CFIA to increase government oversight at meat plans.

He also committed to implementing Weatherill’s 57 recommendations.

For more information, call the CFIA at 1-800-442-2342 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. ET, Monday to Friday.

For information on Listeria monocytogenes, visit the Food Facts web page at: http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/cause/listeriae.shtml.