The listeria outbreak in Canada from plant-based milk alternatives sold by French dairy giant Danone and retail heavyweight Walmart has been traced back to an Ontario factory.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) yesterday (7 August) revealed that the contamination occurred on a “dedicated production line” at a facility in Pickering.

The third-party manufacturer was identified as Joriki, which has been used as a beverage packaging facility by Danone for its plant-based Silk beverage brand.

The CFIA said the contaminated line has been “completely disassembled while inspection at the facility is ongoing”. It added that it is “satisfied that any contamination has been identified and eliminated”.

It issued a voluntary recall on 15 Silk products, including almond, coconut and oat variants last month, alongside Walmart’s private-label Great Value plant-based milks.

The agency said: “Our highest priority is always food safety and the health of Canadians. We take food safety investigations seriously and employ every measure to remove risks to consumers as soon as possible.

“It is vital that Canadians have the information they need to have confidence in Canada's food safety system.”

Last month, the CFIA wrote that two consumers have died in Canada following listeria infections. Another ten people have suffered infections, with the majority occurring in Ontario, alongside one case each in Quebec and Nova Scotia.

It said that nearly 60% of the people infected are older than 60, while 67% are female.

The French dairy giant made a move into dairy-free by acquiring WhiteWave Foods, the US manufacturer of the Alpro and Silk plant-based dairy-alternative ranges, in 2016 for $12.5bn.