The recent outbreak of the deadly listeria monocytogenes bacteria has resulted in more than 200 different deli meat products being pulled off the shelves of local supermarkets. And reaction from food retailers in the Smoky River has been both swift and prompt in the wake of the nation-wide Maple Leaf Foods recall which is directly responsible for the deaths of two Albertans, including a woman from Grande Prairie. At Falher IGA, staff took immediate steps to remove any and all of the 220 products affected by the recall. Jean Lemire, who owns and operates Falher IGA with her husband, Albert, says they removed more than 30 different varieties of deli meat products from their shelves in the wake of the listeria scare. “Our wholesaler, Sobeys, was extremely diligent in notifying us about which affected Maple Leaf products we needed to immediately dispose of,” Lemire explains. Similar measures were immediately implemented in McLennan at Lakeview (Bigway) Foods where management worked hand-in-hand with provincial health inspectors and their wholesale distributor to get the affected products off the shelves. “Everything went really smooth,” says owner Gus Brulotte, adding that the Maple Leaf recall affected six different items which amounted to approximately $350 worth of food. Both Brulotte and Lemire encourage residents in the region to check the product codes on all Maple Leaf products they may have in their freezer and look for an “EST 97B” code (typically found beside the best before date). The two stores are offering full refunds to customers who have these Maple Leaf products. As of last Tuesday, the Maple Leaf listeria outbreak claimed 12 lives with another seven deaths under investigation. Thirty-eight people have been sickened from tainted meat, while there are another 14 suspected infection cases. And more are expected according to federal government Health Minister Tony Clement with more likely to follow in the coming weeks. “We expect both the number of suspected cases and the number of confirmed cases will increase as the investigation continues and samples continue to be received from provincial, territorial and federal partners,” Clement recently said. That’s due to the bacterium’s long incubation period of up to 70 days after contaminated food is consumed with the average incubation period being approximately 30 days. The outbreak originated from tainted meat products distributed at Maple Leaf Foods – Canada’s biggest food company – in Toronto, Ont. Maple Leaf started recalling deli meats processed at its Toronto plant on Aug. 17. The recall was expanded just over two weeks ago to 220 products. People most susceptible to the listeria bacteria (which can cause flu-like symptoms, such as a stiff neck, headache, nausea and fever) are newborns, the elderly, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems.