FAQ

COVID-19 FAQs

Canned Seafood Brands

Trace Your Catch

Tuna & Salmon

Seafood Delectables

Product Information

Preparation & Storage

Health & Dietary Concerns

Sustainability

A. I’m concerned that I could get COVID-19 from your products. What are you doing to prevent contamination of your products?

All our canned and pouch shelf-stable, refrigerated and frozen seafood products undergo a scientifically determined high heat sterilization process designed to provide a commercially sterile product that is free of any organisms, such as bacteria and viruses, including COVID-19, which might cause illness. In addition, our highly trained personnel follow stringent quality control procedures during processing in order to ensure that the product provided to the consumer is of the highest quality. The following Canadian government website can give you up to date COVID-19 information and associated information on Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) regulated food products. Clover Leaf Seafoods’ canned and pouched seafood products are a great addition to any Be-Prepared list.
www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19

B. I understand that your products are heat sterilized, but doesn’t that only protect me from the product inside the can or pouch? Can’t the outside of the package be contaminated after heat treatment?

Our processes are highly automated and very little human touching occurs after the product is heat treated, packaged and distributed. The heat treatment renders the outside of the package free of any organisms, such as bacteria and viruses that might cause illness and the likelihood of contamination by human touching is minimal. Once packaged in cases for distribution, the product is sent to warehouses and grocery customers where it sits for several weeks prior to being placed on the store shelves. In the case of viruses, such as COVID-19, research has shown that viruses are not active after 2 – 9 days, so it is extremely unlikely that you would be infected. The Canadian government advises that the risk of spread from products shipped over a period of days or weeks at room temperature is extremely low.

www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/prevention-risks

F. What type of policies do you have in place for the safety of your products?

All our canned and pouch products undergo a scientifically determined high heat sterilization process designed to provide a commercially sterile product that is free of any organisms, such as bacteria and viruses that might cause illness. In addition, our highly trained personnel follow stringent quality control, GMP & personal hygiene procedures during processing in order to ensure that the product provided to the consumer is of the highest quality.

G. Are your policies and practices consistent with public health recommendations and federal & provincial laws?

Yes, we are confident that our products meet all the stringent government regulations and standards, and we believe that the procedures in place will ensure the continued safety of our products. We have been inspecting, auditing and monitoring the facilities that produce our products based upon these government standards for many years. Reviews of our supplier programs are on-going and have always been a part of the quality assurance program at Clover Leaf Seafoods. We continue to monitor advice from the Canadian government to ensure that any change in standards are immediately implemented within our supply chain. The following Canadian government website can give you up to date COVID-19 information and associated information on Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) regulated food products.

www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19

H. Should we be concerned when the product is sourced from foreign countries?

No, there are not any concerns. The processing facilities in other countries undergo the same comprehensive inspecting, auditing and monitoring that all Clover Leaf facilities undergo. The canned and pouched products from these facilities undergo a scientifically determined high heat sterilization process designed to provide a commercially sterile product that is free of any organisms, such as bacteria and viruses, including COVID-19, which might cause illness. Our Quality Assurance Department does preliminary inspections on representative samples before they leave other countries to ensure that all products entering Canada meet Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) standards, and we are confident that our products meet stringent regulations and standards.

I. What is Clover Leaf Seafoods doing to prevent COVID-19 from impacting your employees?

Clover Leaf Seafoods continues to monitor COVID-19 to ensure the safety of our employees. We have developed tiered contingency plans in the event the situation worsens, and people are unable to come to work as regularly scheduled. We are encouraging employees who can work from home to do so, for a period time and have provided them appropriate tools to allow them to be effective in a remote setting. Additionally, our Human Resources Team is making additional resources available to our employees to address questions & concerns, as well as, how to protect oneself, family and co-workers.

J. Would distribution of your products become a problem?

We are in a solid position to service orders for currently planned and forecasted volumes across most items in our portfolio. We have business plans in place for a successful start to 2020 and should have no issue meeting and servicing these base plans. We are deploying measures immediately to ensure we maintain supply continuity. At Clover Leaf Seafoods, the team is committed to our central value of “Finding A Way” and we have already begun to aggressively mobilize to support spiking demand. We are accelerating purchasing of raw materials, adding production days in our factories, and expending our sourcing efforts broadly to accommodate increased shopping and consumption over the coming months.

K. Is your company making plans to address potential employee absenteeism and transportation disruption?

L. Are you providing your employees with supplemental training on hygiene and to stay away from work if they are sick?

In our manufacturing facilities our policies require that employees who are sick are asked not to come into work. We have rigorous standards for hand washing and personal hygiene. With the recent COVID-19 outbreak we have reinforced the training with our manufacturing employees and trained office personnel, as well. We’ve asked all employees to follow advice recommended by government agencies to mitigate the COVID-19 outbreak which includes:

Wash your hands frequently with soap for at least 20 seconds.
Maintain social distancing - at least 2 meters (6 feet) between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth.
Practice respiratory hygiene (covering you mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze).
If you have fever, cough, and difficulty breathing, stay away from work and seek medical care early.
Stay informed and follow advice given by federal and provincial government agencies.

Further guidance on measures to limit the risk of transmission can be found at the following Canadian government site:

www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/prevention-risks

M. Are there any policies in place with respect to food that was prepared in the presence of an employee who is sick infected with the COVID-19?

Our policies require that employees who are sick are asked not to come in to work. Additionally, in the event that an employee is infected with COVID-19 and is not aware, all of our canned and pouched products undergo a scientifically determined high heat sterilization process designed to provide a commercially sterile product that is free of any organisms, such as bacteria and viruses that might cause illness. In addition, our highly trained personnel follow stringent quality control procedures during processing in order to ensure that the product provided to the consumer is of the highest quality.

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FAQ

A. I’m concerned that I could get COVID-19 from your products. What are you doing to prevent contamination of your products?

B. I understand that your products are heat sterilized, but doesn’t that only protect me from the product inside the can or pouch? Can’t the outside of the package be contaminated after heat treatment?

F. What type of policies do you have in place for the safety of your products?

G. Are your policies and practices consistent with public health recommendations and federal & provincial laws?

H. Should we be concerned when the product is sourced from foreign countries?

I. What is Clover Leaf Seafoods doing to prevent COVID-19 from impacting your employees?

J. Would distribution of your products become a problem?

K. Is your company making plans to address potential employee absenteeism and transportation disruption?

L. Are you providing your employees with supplemental training on hygiene and to stay away from work if they are sick?

M. Are there any policies in place with respect to food that was prepared in the presence of an employee who is sick infected with the COVID-19?

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