Outbreaks of the deadly e.coli O157:H7 regularly make headlines – and this time, the headlines are hitting close to home, right here in Ontario. We also have a made-in-Canada solution to this ongoing problem, but we need the government’s help to implement it.

We haven’t had a major, headline-grabbing e.coli incident since the Walkerton water tragedy eight years ago, where seven people died and hundreds more became ill after the town’s drinking water became contaminated.

E.coli O157:H7 lives naturally inside cattle without making them sick and they shed it into their environment through their manure. From there, it can end up in our meat or even our vegetables if they are nurtured with e.coli-contaminated water.

But there is a solution, one that, coincidentally, was invented right here in Canada. It is a livestock vaccine that will lower the prevalence of e.coli in cattle, thereby radically decreasing the risk of people becoming ill. The vaccine is currently available to farmers under special license as it hasn’t quite completed final regulatory approvals here in Canada. It’s unique, its innovative and it’s expensive.

And therein lies the problem. Because the treatment is for live cattle, it’s the farmer that has to pay for and administer the vaccine. But the end result – dramatically lowering the risk of humans getting sick with e.coli – benefits all of society. So is it fair that the farmer should bear the full brunt of the cost?

Farmers already shoulder a lot of costs on our behalf as they plant trees, nurture the soil and help keep our water sources clean. This is where I think the government could step in and support the vaccination of Canada’s cattle herd. The cost would represent just a tiny fraction of our huge annual health care budget, yet it would save thousands of people from getting sick every year.

We’ve already shown to be a leader in developing this cutting edge new vaccine. Now’s our chance to be a leader in its implementation as well.