Canadian food safety requirements are very stringent. The safety of all consumers in this country is at stake. The food industry must therefore constantly innovate to protect customers from potential emerging threats. Companies are required to be rigorous and precise when it comes to sampling their products because, even though Canada’s food supply is one of the safest in the world, viruses, bacteria, parasites, allergens or contaminants can sneak in during the production of any food.

Avoidable incidents 

Between 2019 and 2020, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency conducted 3,222 food safety investigations and recalled 560 products across the country. Of these, 41 were due to the presence of foreign matter (e.g., insects, hair, metal, plastic, wood or glass fragments), while 376 were microbiological hazards. These incidents can have serious consequences. In 2019, the Public Health Agency of Canada reported nearly 1,116 cases of Escherichia coli (E. coli) infection and 5,845 cases of Salmonellosis, for a total of nearly 7,000 cases of these two acute gastrointestinal illnesses in the Canadian population. In addition, 172 people contracted Listeriosis, a rare, serious and invasive disease that can lead to fatal complications.

These harmful situations could be easily avoided by using appropriate equipment and improving the precision of laboratory materials handling. Such disturbing statistics are also a reminder to the entire food science community of the importance of daily sampling tests.