Experts in the US are starting to weigh in on the handling of the XL Foods beef recall here in Canada and the dialogue isn't very friendly.

Doug Powell is a food inspection professor at Kansas State University and thinks our country's response to the tainted meat has been poor at best.

Speaking on 630 CHED's The Rutherford Show, Powell says it's shocking how badly this has been handled, or at the very least, communicated to the public.

"What I really see is the rise of mediocrity in Canada on these sorts of things. Ya know, the minister (of agriculture) should stand up, the company (XL Foods) hsa been completely absent, I mean, has nobody learned anything from the lysteria outbreak in 2008?"

Powell says the situation in the US is much better, with all meat from XL Foods being taken off store shelves the day after tainted beef was found at the border on September 4th.

Here in Canada, the CFIA didn't issue a warning until almost two weeks after that. (lk)