American Foods Group has issued a beef recall for nearly 96,000 pounds of ground beef products over concerns that the meat is contaminated with E. coli. According to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), two people have already been sickened by the E. coli tainted American Foods Group ground beef.
The problems with the American Foods Group ground beef where uncovered by the Illinois Department of Health which had been investigating E. coli poisoning in two people. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), E. coli is responsible for sickening 73,000 people every year, and of those, 60 will die from the disease. E. coli is marked by the sudden onset of stomach pain and severe cramps. This is followed by diarrhea that is watery and bloody. Sometimes there is vomiting, but there is no fever. While most people will recover completely, E. coli poisoning can be very dangerous for children, the elderly and anyone with a weak immune system. In some cases, E. coli will cause a disorder called hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can be life-threatening.
The American Foods Group ground beef recall involves ground beef distributed to stores in Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Virginia. The E. coli contaminated ground beef was produced at the American Foods Group meat packing plant in Green Bay, Wisconsin on October 10. The products where distributed for further processing and repackaging, so the tainted ground beef will not bear the processor’s establishment number.
The products included in the recall are:
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 73/27.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “65000.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 75/25.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “65800.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF SIRLOIN, FINE GROUND 90/10.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “66000.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 80/20.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “66400.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 75/25.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “19900.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 73/27.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “20100.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF CHUCK, FINE GROUND 82/18.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “20600.”
_Bulk weight packages of “CHOP BEEF STEAK, FINE GRIND “86/14.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “30000.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF SIRLOIN, FINE GROUND 92/08.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “30400.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF ROUND, FINE GROUND 87/13.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “30200.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 80/20.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “30700.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF CHUCK, FINE GROUND 82/18.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “31400.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 93/07.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “31600.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF, FINE GROUND 73/27.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “31700.”
_Bulk weight packages of “BEEF MODIFIED, FINE GROUND 93/07.” Each shipping label bears a product code of “31900.”
E. coli tainted meat has become a major health problem, as the number of outbreaks and meat recalls blamed on this deadly bacteria have reached record levels in recent months. So far this year, there have been dozens of recalls of E. coli contaminated meat, more than double what they where in 2006. Often, the slow action by the US Department of Agriculture and other agencies charged with protecting the US food supply allows E. coli contaminated foods to sicken thousands of people across the country.
<You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
