The Canadian Food Inspection Agency went public about 2 a.m. Saturday July 7/07 with the news that five people in Alberta and B.C. were sick with E. coli O157 and that Canada Safeway was warning consumers not to eat fresh ground beef products with best before dates of May 26 to June 6 inclusively, as well as some frozen patties.

In media coverage this a.m., Davendra Sharma, a CFIA food safety recall specialist, said, "Our warning is quite straightforward. If you have any of these products, do not consume them." Citing privacy reasons, CFIA would not reveal where the beef was made, and would not disclose the locations of the sick people.

Here are some questions:
How did health officials link the five cases?
When did health officials first link the illnesses to specific beef products?
Why did it take the length of time that it did to issue the advisory?

I’m sure there are valid explanations. But being vague in public advisories could mean that bureaucrats just aren’t that into you.