The listeriosis outbreak didn't just kill 20 people and sicken dozens of others, it also changed the way a majority of Canadians think about ready-to-eat meats. 

That was the finding of a recent study by University of Guelph researchers. 

"The listeriosis outbreak was not only associated with the death of 20 people and the illness of many others, but it also contributed to economic loss in the food industry," said Prof. John Cranfield of the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics.

"But the impact of the recall on consumer confidence in the food system and food consumption decisions was largely unknown."

That is until Cranfield and Prof. Spencer Henson conducted an extensive survey on the topic.

"Before the food recall, consumers did not consider the potential risks of ready-to-eat meats to be significant," Cranfield said.

They found that most Canadians were aware of the outbreak, and they knew the sources of the illness.  

That changed their shopping habits.  Before the outbreak only 6% said they never consumed ready-to-eat meat products at home.  That number jumped to 39% once listeriosis made headlines.

Other behaviour-related findings include:

• 30 per cent have stopped buying ready-to-eat meats from Canada;
• 27 per cent now eat less often at restaurants and fast-food outlets;
• 52 per cent are paying more attention to food labels;
• 32 per cent are cooking more food at home; and
• 30 per cent are taking more time in food preparation.

Interested in keeping up on the trends? Here's a link to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency  website, where the public can keep track of food recalls and other issues with the food system and sign up for email alerts about recalls.