I was recently invited to attend an event put on by Maple Leaf Foods for bloggers. Unfortunately for me it coincided with a week away from home, with out kids, with my husband. Since I wanted to enjoy my time alone with my wonderful husband, I called Chantel Kowdrysh to see if she could fill in. I figured she’s busy mother of six, surely she would like to know more about food safety… and I bet she’s enjoy a night out too. I was right! Thank you to Chantel for pinch hitting… or writing… for me!
By the Way! If you leave a comment below you may be selected to win a Maple Leaf Gift pack… containing an insulated bag containing a Maple Leaf Apron, a Maple Leaf Meat thermometer, a Maple Leaf Pen, a package of Dempster’s Oven Fresh Multigrain Baguettes, and coupons for a FREE box of Maple Leaf NEW Prime Frozen Meat Products and a $5.00 off coupon for A package of new Natural Selections deli meat. Contest Ends July 2, 2010. Prize available for Local Pick Up only in Mississauga.
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There was some rumbling of thunder, and flashes of lightening, but nothing was keeping me away from my destination on Thursday May 27. No sir, I had been handed the best gift of all by Mississauga Kids very own Anne Green. A night away from home, and the opportunity to eat a wonderful dinner – without six screaming children!
Maple Leaf Foods paired together with a Toronto based word of mouth marketing company Matchstick, who are a member of WOMMA (Word of Mouth Marketing Association) to put together the Maple Leaf Roundtable Blogger event. The event was held in Mississauga at Maple Leaf Foods ThinkFOOD! Centre. It was a lovely event that offered the opportunity to meet a group of wonderful bloggers from all over the greater Toronto area including, Kingston, Kitchener, and London. As well, it was great to finally be able to meet my email buddy Sumaya Khan from Matchstick, who was a key person in orchestrating the event.
Upon arriving I immediately felt at ease as I began to mingle with so many great bloggers, writers, and authors, even though many of them I had never met. The evening started out in the front lobby with some very tasty appetizers including Maple Leafs Natural Selection Turkey and Ham. Yummy! Something a busy mom like me would definitely put in my children’s school lunches!
Maple Leaf Food Natural Selections Black Forest Ham
Following the front lobby mingling, we all gathered into a beautifully set room with a dining area giving us all full view of the kitchen and the Chef who was hard at work.
Since the 2008 Listeria outbreak and recall, Maple Leaf has been attempting to restore their reputation by setting new standards in food safety and nutrition, and clearly the Round Table Blogger event was a marketing ploy to reach out to us, the costumer, parent, and blogger to assist in their endeavour to get their message across about their renewed commitment to food safety and the introduction of their Maple Leaf Food Safety Pledge. However, it was quite obvious that Maple Leaf Foods are taking things very seriously as there were numerous key Senior Management people present, including President and Chief Executive Officer Michael McCain who opened up with the following statement:
“2008 was one of the most challenging years for me both personally and in business. On our watch 22 people died.”
He certainly took full accountability and owed up to the fact that Maple Leaf was at fault, yet they learned some very valuable lessons from the tragic event and are taking those lessons and applying it on a daily basis. He talked about Root Cause Analysis, Investment in the people and Maple Leaf Food’s commitment to becoming a global leader in food safety.
In January of 2010 Sharon Beals was hired as Senior Vice President, Food Safety and Quality Assurance, and Dr. Huffman was brought on board as Chief Food Safety Officer. Their roles are to ensure that Maple Leaf is not only meeting strenuous food and safety standards but that they are also reaching heights that go above and beyond. Part of the process involves daily listeria testing and what’s known as the 8:30am call, where the results of the testing are thoroughly reviewed and discussed. Improved strategies through replacing $20 million in infrastructure, intensive cleaning practices, piloting new food safety programs, continually making improvements to their HACCP (hazard Analysis and critical control points) program, and working towards their goals of becoming GFSI (global food safety initiative) and BRC (British Retail Consortium) certified are just a few of the first steps that they have begun.
Another discussion point was the fact that there are always new and better technologies for testing, but that listeria is everywhere – even our kitchen’s, however, it is up to us to ensure that it doesn’t have the opportunity to spread leading to infections and illness. See the attached kitchen checklist and helpful tips provided by Maple Leaf at the bottom of this post.
Chantel Kowdrysh with Michael McCain - Take Note of the Winnie the Pooh Sticker. doesn’t matter what you do or how hard you try to hide it, there is always evidence that you are a mom! Thanks Ryley!
At the end of the session I was left with the belief that Maple Leaf Foods are sincere in their efforts and that they have been able to make considerable strides since the tragic events in the summer of 2008. Do they still have some ways to go? Of course they do, but really what company doesn’t? As a mother of six children do I have faith in the safety of Maple Leaf Food products? Absolutely.
As Michael McCain stated several times throughout the evening “we are not perfect.” True enough, nothing can be a 100% perfect, but it is comforting to know that the 24,000 workers at Maple Leaf Foods are certainly trying to be.
Chantel Kowdrysh – The Six Pack Mom
Food safety tips to keep top of mind:
1. Keep hand washing soap in the kitchen so it is easily accessible and wash your hands with soapy warm water for at least 20 seconds prior to starting meal preparation and during any new stage from preparation to meal time.
2. Keep a clean kitchen. Keeping your kitchen clean and tidy can reduce the chance of bacteria build-up.
3. Keep raw foods separated from cooked and ready-to-eat foods to avoid cross-contamination.
4. Carefully monitor and check best-before dates and package integrity of perishable products. Do not keep products beyond expiration date printed on the packaging.
5. Keep separate cutting boards, utensils and platters for raw meat, poultry and seafood and for ready-to-eat/cooked foods.
6. Keep cold foods cold (4°C or below).
7. Keep hot foods hot (60°C or above).
8. Keep a working meat thermometer on hand to check the internal temperatures of cooked foods. Always cook meat to the safe internal temperatures.
Source: http://www.mapleleaf.com/en/market/food-safety/familyfood-safety-plan/
