My first 100 days have been exciting and busy to say the least.  It is clear to me from the dozens of highly professional and dedicated people I’ve met who work hard every day to ensure the products we produce are safe, that Maple Leaf is very committed to its journey to food safety leadership.  I have encountered a strong culture of accountability, transparency and openness, an intense desire to get things done and to getting them done with rigour and diligence.    We share much in common, including a passion for food and food safety that ensures my new role will be very rewarding!

 Since arriving in January, I have toured 19 plants in three Canadian provinces meeting with plant managers and employees from QA, production, HR and sanitation/maintenance to gain insights into our operations.  With nearly 100 meat and bakery operations and a diverse range of products across the company, I have many other facilities to visit in the months ahead to expand my knowledge of the business.  I have met with two key customers so far and will take every opportunity I can to meet with others to obtain their perspectives on food safety. 

I have had multiple meetings with all three critical Federal government agencies: Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada, Public Health Agency of Canada, and look forward to ongoing dialog with food safety officials within the government.

I have assembled a core team of professionals that are assessing every aspect of Maple Leaf Foods Food Safety practices and technologies.  We are crafting strategies that will lead to continuous improvement of our systems for producing safe food. 

We have much to do but we are all committed to working aggressively to building upon our existing programs to propel us along our journey to food safety leadership.  More to come in future posts.