The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service has announced a 60,424 pound recall of ground beef products by National Beef Packing Co. LLC.
While no illnesses have yet to be associated with the recalled beef. the company said the meat may be contaminated with E.coli O157:H7. The bacteria can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration and is deadly in many cases. Young children, the elderly and individuals with weak immune systems may be particularly susceptible to the bacteria, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
The USDA recommends cooking ground beef to a temperature of at least 160 degrees to prevent sickness. The agency said the temperature should be checked with a food thermometer that measures internal temperature.
The bad beef was discovered by the Ohio Department of Agriculture as part of it’s routine testing.
Products recalled by National Beef include:
Ground beef chubs (packaged cylinders of meat) produced on July 23, 2011 with a freeze-by date of August 12, 2011:
Boxes containing six 10-pound chubs of “National Beef 80/20 Fine Ground Chuck,” product code 483.
Boxes containing eight 5-pound chubs of “National Beef 80/20 Fine Ground Chuck,” product code 684.
Boxes containing twelve 3-pound chubs of “National Beef 80/20 Fine Ground Chuck,” product code 782 or 785.
Boxes containing six 10-pound chubs of “National Beef 80/20 Fine Ground Chuck,” product code 787.
Ground beef chubs produced on July 25, 2011 with a freeze-by date of August 14, 2011:
Boxes containing eight 10-pound chubs of “National Beef 81/19 Fine Ground Beef,” product code 431.
Boxes containing eight 10-pound chubs of “National Beef 90/10 Fine Ground Beef,” product code 471.
Boxes containing six 10-pound chubs of “National Beef 86/14 Fine Ground Round,” product code 494.
Each box and chub is labeled with the establishment number “Est. 262” within the USDA mark of inspection.
The recalls primarily affect beef products sold by Winn Dixie, Publix and Kroger grocery stores in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina and Tennessee. However, the USDA said the meat was sent to several distributors and could have been repackaged for consumers and sold nationwide.
Over 60,000 pound of ground beef have been recalled due to possible E. Coli contamination. Click here for more info.
