The Weatherill Investigation was established in January as an independent investigation into the Listeriosis outbreak.  Sheila Weatherill who is leading this task is asking Canadians for their feedback.  Individuals are encouraged to send comments about their views on the Listeriosis outbreak last summer and more generally on food safety. 

The email address to send your comments is: contacts@li.investigation-enquete.gc.ca.  

Examples of valuable feedback requested include:

• How did you first learn about the outbreak (e.g., TV, newspaper, radio, word of mouth)?
• Did you go online to look up information on Listeriosis? Which web site(s) were most informative? If you visited the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s website, was the information easy to locate, was it easy to understand and was it helpful?
• Did the information you obtained (from whatever source) tell you what you needed to know? For example, did you know what products had been recalled, and how to tell if they were in your refrigerator? Were the symptoms of Listeriosis clearly communicated, so that you were able to determine if you or others close to you should seek medical advice?
• In terms of management and communications of the crisis, what do you think should have been done better?

We are extremely supportive of this “Listening to Canadians” initiative.  Maple Leaf learned many lessons from last year’s tragedy and welcomes the opportunity to learn more through this effort so that by working together with government and industry we can champion for better food safety performances in the interests of all Canadians.