In our view: As consumers, we should consider what we choose to eat more carefully

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Scandals involved tainted food and flawed products are nothing new to Canadians. Unfortunately, items make their way into the marketplace that shouldn't.

The Maple Leaf/Listeria situation seems to be on another level. The number of potentially tainted food products, the area over which they were distributed and the numbers of people who have died or fallen ill as a result all combine to set this problem apart from others in the past.

It's a tragedy that there's been a loss of a single life, let alone numerous ones.

If there's any good to be found in this sad and scary set of circumstances is that the Maple Leaf scandal has shone a spotlight on the vulnerability of the food-processing industry.

As Canadians, we've really just taken it for granted that the food we buy - be it from one of the big-box grocery stores or the mom-and-pop convenience store around the corner - will be safe.

Many of us never give a thought to how our food gets from the field or farm to the family dinner table.

There's little the average citizen can do to alter operations at big food-processing plants, but we can take a greater interest in the food we opt to buy.

We have more options than ever, with organic meats and produce now available on a local level. Perhaps recent developments will inspire us to eat healthier and support local food merchants.

Also, the greater awareness of potential risks ought to drive us to demand more from the businesses we support and the politicians we count on to keep our best interests in mind.

It should also remind us that there are parts of the world in which dangerous bacteria and the staples of everyday life go hand in hand.

A small number of Canadians have just gone through a crash course on living in the Third World, where disease and death can lurk in one bite or a single sip.

Businesspeople and bureaucrats have a legal responsibility to ensure such products and services are safe for us.

The current meat-recall crisis is a reminder that we all have a moral responsibility to care for our fellow man, no matter how distant he may be.

What's encouraging in the middle of this serious situation is the refreshingly different approach that Maple Leaf - and specifically CEO Michael McCain - has taken in its response.

McCain passed by potential scapegoats. "No comment" was no option for him.

He's apologized. He's taken responsibility. And he's brought the business to a halt as experts desperately look for answers.

In this day and age of litigiousness, McCain has stepped forward and been open with the public. He's owned up to the flaws in the system. It doesn't seem as though stock prices and quarterly results are factoring into his thinking and his response to the crisis.

We applaud those decisions, and we believe most Canadians do as well.