Food inspection agency says metal pieces in bread not ‘high-risk’, fails to advise grocers of recall

The recall of dozens of bread products in Canada after the discovery of metal pieces in some of them is causing consternation among independent grocers.

Gary Sands is incredulous about the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s handling of the recall. Sands is vice-president of government relations at the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers (CFIG), an industry organization that provide educational programming and advocates for over 6900 independent grocery retailers across Canada.

Usually, the CFIG gets a recall notice from the CFIA and then distributes it to its members, he says.

That didn’t happen in this case. Instead, he says, CFIG members found out like the rest of the public did: via the media.

He contacted the CFIA and was told it was not “a high-risk situation,” Sands says. “That’s a head scratcher for me. Metal in food is high risk.”

He shared an email with the National Post that he received from a CFIA official (the sender’s name is deleted).

It reads: “The CFIA…posts all food recalls in Canada regardless of class or scope on the Government of Canada’s Recalls and Safety Alerts website. Notifications…are not meant to advise consumers or retailers to take product action or warn them of a food safety incident.”

Despite the official’s comments, it’s clear both industry and the public treated this as a bread product “recall”. The government website explictly states it’s a recall: Various brands of bread and buns recalled due to pieces of metal.

However, the CFIA notice was a Class 2 recall, which means there is a “moderate risk” that consuming the food may lead to short-term or non-life threatening health problems according to the government website. Then again, the notice says the bread products on the list are not to be used, sold, served or distributed.

The whole scenario caused “frustration and confusion” for CFIG members he said.

“There is a ton of confusion out there today about bread recalls,” one unnamed member wrote Sands in an email he forwarded to the National Post.

Meanwhile, the executive director of the Baking Association of Canada has a different take on the situation.

“Nobody died,” points out, Martin Barnett. His association advocates for bakers across the country, and also provides educational programming and resources.

“While no one wants to find foreign objects in their food, there are checks and balances in the system” that should reassure consumers, he says, and points to the coding on food products that ensure a complete recall.

Sands thinks the CFIA needs “to do a better job of getting this information out to industry and consumers.”

The recall of the bread products was eventually linked to a recall that was issued two days earlier on Oct. 29 of Sifto brand Hy·Grade Salt, says Sands.  Compass Minerals, which produces the salt product, initiated a recall after receiving a customer complaint about pieces of metal in the product.

According to the CFIA advisory, the recalling firm is Wonder Brands Inc.

Parent company Weston Foods produces private label products and well-known brands, including Wonder, Ace Bakery, Country Harvest, D’Italiano, Casa Mendosa, Dave’s Killer Bread and Gadoua. Some of these brands are on the recall list.

Here is the complete list:

Country Harvest: 14 Grains 100% Whole Grain Brown Bread, Ancient Grains 100% Whole Grain Brown Bread, Everything Seasoned Multigrain Bread, Flax & Quinoa 100% Whole Grain Brown Bread, Herb & Garlic Seasoned Herb Bread, No Sugar Added 100% Whole Wheat Bread, No Sugar Added White with Whole Grains Bread with Grains, Oats & Honey 100% Whole Grain Brown Bread, Seeds & Grains 100% Whole Grain Brown Bread, Sourdough Multigrain Bread, Stone Milled 100% Whole Wheat Bread, Whole Grain & Protein Blend Protein Multigrain Bread

D’Italiano: Brioche Style Hamburger Buns, Original Hamburger Buns, Sesame Hamburger Buns

Deli World: Sesame Buns

Giant Value: 100% Whole Wheat Bread, White Bread, 12 Grains Multigrain Loaf, Ancient Grains Multigrain Loaf, Flax & Quinoa Multigrain Loaf, White Bread

No Name: 100% Whole Wheat Bread, Original Bread

President’s Choice: Gigantico Burger Buns

Wonder: 100% Whole Wheat Bread, Classic White Bread, White Bread, White + Fibre – White Bread with added Oat Hull Fibre, White Hamburger Buns, White Hotdog Buns

The recall was issued in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and Quebec.

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