After the recent food poisoning problem at the CNE, some people are wondering how the food is being monitored at the Barrie Fair.
People can taste food from some 20 different vendors at the Essa Agriplex and some couldn’t help but wonder about food safety after 150 fell ill in Toronto.
Toronto Public Health is still investigating but believes the illness was caused by the Cronut burger sold at the Epic Burger and Waffles.
Cronut burgers are not on the menu at the Barrie Fair but traditional favourites like burgers, hot dogs, fries and doughnuts are. Each vendor had to apply to the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit for a permit and full inspections were done before they could begin serving food.
Senior health inspector Grant Lafontaine says since the fair opened, a team of health inspectors have been conducting follow up inspections everyday with each vendor.
“We’re looking for cleaning and sanitation, proper temperature control, prevention of cross contamination, proper equipment and hygiene.”
The health unit says there haven’t been any problems with food vendors so far and all have passed inspections.
John Keates is well aware of the risks and welcomes the daily inspections. Keates has also put in place stringent health and safety protocols on his chip and burger truck.
“We wash our hands regularly, have different people handling meat and fries,” says Keates. “We also have a company that washes the trailer down, ceilings, the wall, grills, and disinfects everything.”
And though the Cronut has people talking, many say they won’t let what happened at the CNE spoil their indulgence at the Barrie Fair.
Paramedics say so far there haven’t been any cases of people getting sick from the food at the fair. If that happens the health unit says it will shut down that vendor and conduct a full inspection.
