XL Lakeside Shutdown
XL Foods was temporarily closed on September 27, 2012, by order of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency due to Escherichia coli O157:H7 being discovered in processed meat originating from the plant. The plant was testing incorrectly for E. coli in meat, so the testing procedures were made more stringent. The plant processes between 2000 and 5000 cattle per day, representing approximately one-third of Canada's 2012 beef slaughtering capacity.
According to American regulators and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, testing practices in place at the plant were not stringent enough to protect consumers from the E. coli contamination. The incident has also been linked to increased production at the plant during the time when the E. coli was detected.
A total of 18 confirmed cases of infection with E. coli O157:H7 were reported during the subsequent outbreak linked to XL Foods.
On October 18, 2012, it was announced that the XL Lakeside plant was to be taken over by JBS USA for 60 days with "an exclusive option to buy the Canadian and U.S. operations of XL Foods".
The Brooks plant was sold to JBS Canada on January 14, 2013.
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