Plagues,
Pestilences and Diseases
US Ground beef recalled on E.coli contamination
A Kansas slaughterhouse is recalling 60,242 pounds of ground beef
products that may be contaminated with deadly E. coli 0157:H7,
the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection
Service says.
The beef was produced by National Beef Packing Co., LLC located in
Dodge City. The problem was discovered by the Ohio Department of
Agriculture when it conducted routine microbial testing at a
facility that purchased the beef for further processing. A
statement from the USDA says that an investigation revealed that
the products from the Kansas facility were the “sole source for
the positive product sample” and that no reports of illness have
been received by the company or Food Safety Inspection Service in
connection with eating the products.
E. Coli 0157:H7, also called E. coli or E. coli 0157, are the most
commonly identified bacteria in North America, according to
information on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
website, which notes that news reports about outbreaks of “E.
coli” infections usually involve E. coli 0157. The bacteria
cause disease by making Shiga toxin, which can produce severe
stomach cramps, bloody diarrhea, vomiting and low fever. The CDC
information reveals that while most people get better within five
to seven days, some infections can be life threatening,
particularly for young children and elderly people.
The recalled products include boxes containing ground beef
“chubs,” which are cylindrical plastic-covered rolls containing
ground beef. The items include boxes of three-, five- and 10-pound
chubs, produced on July 23, with a "Freeze By" date of August 12,
2011, and boxes of 10-pound ground beef chubs produced on July 25,
2011, with a "Freeze By" date of August 14, 2011.
The Food Safety Inspection Service warning says the products were
shipped to distributors across the U.S. for further processing or
distribution, and the products “may have been repackaged into
consumer-size packages and sold under different retail brand
names. The retail stores that received the ground beef include
Kroger stores in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee;
Publix stores in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee;
Sam's Club stores in Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio,
Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming;
Wal-Mart stores in Indiana, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota,
Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Wyoming; and Winn-Dixie stores in
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
Consumers can take actions to prevent illness from ground beef
products: Do not eat ground beef unless it has been cooked to a
safe internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit; prevent
cross-contamination by keeping raw meat separate from other food
that won’t be cooked; do not use the color of a meat product to
judge whether products are properly cooked — use a thermometer
instead; make sure to refrigerate meat products within two hours
of buying and even sooner if temperatures are higher than 90
degrees; refrigerate cooked meat within two hours of cooking; and
remember the importance of washing hands, cutting boards, dishes
and utensils with hot soapy water.