Canadian officials conclude investigation into outbreak traced to Silk, Great Value products

Inspectors in Canada have wrapped up their investigation into a deadly outbreak of Listeria infections traced to Silk and Walmart’s Great Value plant-based beverages. The outbreak sickened 20 and killed three. 

“The investigation was not able to confirm the primary source of the contamination within the establishment, which is not uncommon with investigations regarding pasteurized products like plant-based beverages – listeria cannot survive pasteurization – however, cross-contamination could have occurred after processing,” according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

“Due to the food safety investigation, production at Joriki Inc. in Pickering has been fully halted, and significant cleanup and renovations are underway. Manufacturing will not resume until all necessary safety measures are in place and until we are confident that the risk of contamination has been eliminated.”

The contaminated products were produced at Danone Canada’s third-party manufacturing plant, Joriki Inc., in Pickering, Ontario. Some of the implicated products had expiration dates as far back as Oct. 4, even though the outbreak was identified in June.

When the link to the outbreak was confirmed, Danone Canada issued a recall warning for several Silk and Great Value plant-based refrigerated beverages and the affected plant lines were immediately shut down.

The outbreak, discovered on June 20, was preceded by consumer complaints about the products. The consumer complaints received in 2018, 2019, and 2023-2024 were related to the possible presence of allergens, off-taste, and mold. However, there is not a causal link between mold and Listeria, and Listeria cannot be tasted or smelled.

During its investigation, the CFIA discovered that the production facility did not properly implement environmental swabbing and finished product testing required by Health Canada’s Policy on Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods. The CFIA visited the Joriki plant in Pickering six times during its outbreak investigation. The presence of Listeria monocytogenes in the facility was confirmed on July 9.

In 2021, the CFIA conducted a risk assessment, which considered scientific data, the type of food, and manufacturing processes. The Joriki establishment was not considered high-risk before the Listeria monocytogenes contamination was discovered this year. As such, the CFIA did not conduct a license inspection prior to its outbreak investigation; however, it had visited the plant in response to the consumer complaints.

In 2022, the CFIA completed a three-year survey of plant-based milk alternatives and found them to be generally safe, with no Listeria monocytogenes found in the samples taken. While Listeria monocytogenes has typically been linked to products like ready-to-eat meats and unpasteurized dairy products, this year’s outbreak marks the first time plant-based beverages have been linked to illness in Canada.

“The CFIA’s Inspector General has already begun an initial review of the recall’s circumstances to identify risks that could lead to similar incidents. Additionally, the Inspector General will inspect manufactured food establishments, including those producing plant-based products, verify that establishments are inspected appropriately under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, and analyze consumer complaint trends to enhance risk modeling and inspection frequency,” according to the CFIA’s outbreak report.

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