Joriki Beverages in Toronto on Jan. 8. The Canadian company that processed plant-based milk linked to a deadly listeria outbreak has permanently closed all four of its plants.Cole Burston/The Canadian Press
The beverage factory linked to Canada’s deadly listeria outbreak in plant-based milks last summer has been permanently closed and is now up for sale, along with three other sites owned by parent company Joriki Inc.
The facility in Pickering, Ont., which ceased operations this summer after public health officials linked the strain of listeria involved in the outbreak to a production line at the site, will not reopen, a company spokesperson told The Canadian Press.
Joriki’s three other production facilities, including its headquarters in Toronto, a factory in Delta, B.C., and another in Pittston, Pa., have also been closed and are up for sale as the company looks to restructure its operations under protection from creditors.
The company was contracted by Danone Canada to produce almond, coconut and other plant-based milks under the Silk and Great Value brands, which were recalled on July 8 because of listeria concerns. The outbreak led to 20 confirmed illnesses, including three deaths.
A Globe and Mail investigation last month found the Canadian Food Inspection Agency had not examined the site for safety for several years before the outbreak occurred. The last time a Canadian Food Inspection Agency inspector conducted an on-site visit of the facility was in 2019, but that was for consumer complaints involving mould in products, and did not involve checking for listeria, the federal agency said.
The Pickering site had not been inspected for listeria, or to check the company’s listeria prevention protocols, at any point in recent memory, the investigation found. When The Globe asked the CFIA when the agency had last formally inspected the facility for listeria, the CFIA could not provide a date.
The Globe investigation found the CFIA had moved to a risk-based approach in recent years that used an algorithm to prioritize inspections. The algorithm determined how often, or how seldom, a facility would be examined by the agency, if at all. In the years leading up to last summer’s listeria outbreak, the algorithm didn’t flag the Pickering facility as a high priority, which meant it never got inspected.
The algorithm relies mostly on information supplied by the companies themselves, The Globe found, which is often not verified by the CFIA, according to current and former inspectors.
A week after The Globe’s investigation was published, federal Health Minister Mark Holland ordered the CFIA to review the algorithm-based system. The process will examine gaps in how the algorithm was designed, and how it should be improved or overhauled. “The minister is extremely concerned,” Mr. Holland’s spokesperson Alexandra Maheux told The Globe last month.
Listeria outbreak victims call for reform after algorithm failed to flag affected plant
The Pickering production line was shut down on July 6, after public health officials linked the listeria outbreak to the plant-based milks made there. The entire facility ceased operations on Aug. 9 to allow for renovations, Joriki told The Globe in November. However, last week the company sought protection to restructure under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act. The majority of employees at the four Joriki facilities have been laid off.
A memo sent on Dec. 31 to Joriki’s 229 employees in Pennsylvania, informing them of the U.S. factory closing, said the company had been pursuing a sale of its operations. However, a potential buyer advised Joriki on Dec. 23 that it did not intend to proceed with the deal.
Joriki owes $203-million to more than 200 creditors, according to documents filed by its licensed insolvency trustee. That includes $174-million to the Bank of Nova Scotia, $16.1-million to Roynat Capital Inc., $206,000 to Danone North America and $775,000 in unpaid wages and benefits.
“As you are likely aware, the Company has faced significant challenges arising from a product recall, including a significant loss of business and ongoing liquidity issues,” Joriki said in an e-mail to The Globe last week, which was sent through its lawyers.
“We have explored various possibilities that would allow us to maintain operations and protect jobs, however, at this point the company does not have the financing to continue operations. We wish to thank our team of employees for their support and hard work during this challenging period and express our deepest sympathies to the families who were affected by the outbreak.”
With a report from The Canadian Press