Kelowna

A Kelowna charity that feeds the poor says it is disappointed in comments made by a Alberta's Wildrose Party leader that suggested feeding potentially E-Coli tainted meat to the hungry.

Wildrose leader Danielle Smith is on the defensive after posts she made on Twitter Sunday.

“I agree. We all know thorough cooking kills E. coli,” she wrote. “What a waste…. Is there no way to cook it so it’s safe and feed the hungry?”

The Tweet was in response to news that XL Foods, the company at the centre of a massive beef recall due to E-Coli contamination, would dump the tainted meat into a Brooks, Alta landfill.

“Attitudes and comments such as these only further perpetuate the devaluation of a marginalized population,” says Ami Catriona, spokesperson for the Kelowna Union Gospel Mission, which feeds close to 500 meals a day to those is need. “This is wrong.”

“We must follow provincial and federal health and menu guidelines, of which we have a score of 100 per cent. We are also responsible for the health and safety of our clients, a responsibility we take very seriously. We would never serve food that could jeopardize the health of our clients."

Responses to Smith’s initial tweet discussed ways of cooking the meat enough to kill bacteria; others responded with disgust.

Smith then followed up with:

“If they made it available for sale I'd be one of the first to line up to buy some. Most people I've talked to say the same.”

“As the largest service provider in the Okanagan, Kelowna's Gospel Mission works tirelessly to help clients overcome many challenges on a road to productivity— physically, mentally, spiritually and socially,” Catriona continued. “Suggesting that tainted meat be fed to hungry families dehumanizes their struggle, and continues a stigma that is false, and at the very least concerning.”