AIDS Vancouver stocks groceries to give away to people with HIV and AIDS, a disease which cripples the body's immune system.

But even before the Canada-wide outbreak of listeriosis, the Vancouver group never stocked processed meats, because they thought it was too risky.

"It's just one risk that people ought to avoid -- food-related opportunistic problems resulting from a compromised immune system," said Moffat Clarke of AIDS Vancouver.

Since Maple Leaf Foods announced a recall of its products because of contamination from the bacteria listeria monocytogenes, the deaths of 15 people have been linked to products made in one Toronto plant.

B.C.'s largest health authority may follow AIDS Vancouver's lead.

On Wednesday, Vancouver Coastal Health, which oversees 13 hospitals and a quarter of B.C.'s population, told CTV News it will take another look at the practice of serving processed meats to its patients.

But they say that serving fresher foods will be complicated and costly.

Provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall says the time may have come to ban processed meats from our hospitals and long-term care facilities.

That has already happened at B.C. Women's Hospital.

"They did implement a ban on those meats for pregnant women because it has been a risk for pregnant women and they are now developing a protocol for women's health-care institutions," said Kendall.

People with AIDS are some 300 times more likely to get listeriosis than people with normal immune systems.

"The body is on high alert all the time," said Glynn Townson of the B.C. Persons with Aids Society.

Patients are generally on fixed incomes and find it hard to avoid eating cheap processed meats at home, let alone in hospitals and care facilities, Townson said.

"Their immune systems are overworked so it makes them far more susceptible to these kinds of diseases," said Townson.

Mary Polak, B.C.'s minister of healthy living, said that agencies would be watching what happened very closely.

"The health authorities will be reviewing what has taken place in their facilities and they in turn will be working with the leadership council to provide us with any recommendations they feel would serve to improve the safety we have in our food chain for patients in particular," said Polak.

With a report by CTV British Columbia's Peter Grainger