TORONTO – A court in the Canadian province of Alberta approved a settlement of C$4 million reached with XL Foods Inc. to resolve a class action lawsuit in connection with the largest recall of meat products in Canadian history.

The court approved the settlement and a protocol for distributing the money. XL Foods admitted no wrongdoing. The outbreak began in September 2012. Public health officials confirmed 18 individuals were sickened by E. coli-tainted beef produced by XL Foods.

The outbreak led to a recall of more than 1,800 products from the United States and Canada. A panel appointed to review the XL Foods E. coli O157:H7 investigation found that shipments of tainted beef might not have gone into the food chain had the company followed proper food safety procedures and its own protocols. XL Foods accounted for 35 percent of Canada’s beef processing capacity.

In 2013, JBS USA’s Canadian subsidiary, JBS Foods Canada, acquired some of XL Foods’ Canadian operations, including the Brooks, Alberta-based XL Lakeside beef processing plant.