Agriculture giant Cargill recalls ground beef

[Lone_Star_Dem]

Source: Reuters

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Agricultural giant Cargill Inc. said on Saturday it is recalling over 1 million pounds of ground beef distributed in the United States because of possible E. Coli contamination.

Cargill Meat Solutions said the 1.084 million pounds of ground beef was produced at the Wyalusing, Pennsylvania, facility between October 8 and October 11, and distributed to retailers across the country.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture returned a confirmed positive for the E. coli bacteria on a sample produced on October 8, the company said.

<snip>

The recalled products have use/freeze-by dates of Oct 19 through Nov 3. Most will have the USDA establishment number of EST 9400 inside the USDA mark of inspection.



Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN0318729020071103?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews

[Bozita]

1. Most of that meat has already been consumed. -- "use/freeze-by dates of Oct 19 through Nov 3"

Disgusting!

[JBoy]

14. Well then, that should make the problem

much smaller. Probably only a 50,000 pound problem now. :sarcasm:

[HereSince1628]

2. A million pounds here a million pounds there. Lot a cattle dying in vain

I'd say.

Whats this make in the past 2 months about 6 million pounds of ground beef? How many cattle does it take to make that much hamburger?

I'm not a vegetarian or a PETA person but I do respect the lives of farm animals and killing tens of thousands of them only to throw away their flesh is getting into wanton disrespect.

[DS1]

5. That's always might thought, too

All that waste, the numbers are just amazing. If each cow yields 200 pounds of beef, that's 5,000 of them for this recall. 30,000 for the last one.

[Silver Gaia]

9. Good point. I must agree. It reminds me of something my father said.

My father was an avid hunter. But he told me many times that he felt it was important to have respect for the animals he hunted. He would not take a shot if he felt it would not result in a "clean kill" because he felt that to cause undue pain and suffering was wrong. He despised hunters who did such things. He also felt it was very important to consume what is killed, and he always did so (to the point that the meat he and my mother consumed in his later years was largely from what he hunted). I am not fan of hunting, and he knew this, but I could accept what he said, and respect it. I see this in the same light. As a culture, we are so disrespectful of the animals we use as food. Most people today are disconnected from their food. The idea that a living being died to provide that food is not a part of modern consciousness for the most part. It was not always so with humans. The harvest season was once a cause of both celebration and solemn respect. Agribiz and the meat industry have contributed greatly to this disconnect.

[Yael]

3. Weis Market, sell by 11/1/07, EST 9400

Cooked up a pound of taco meat with it just this week. Pulled the package out of the trash and yeppers, its a match.

*sigh*

[truthisfreedom]

4. I can imagine the MBA bean counters sitting around today asking if it can be irradiated and cooked

into dog food.

[pattmarty]

6. JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!!!!!!!

[cosmicdot]

7. again?

Cargill Recalls 844,812 Pounds of Beef, Citing E. Coli Bacteria

Oct. 7

(Bloomberg) -- Cargill Inc., the largest U.S. agricultural
company, recalled 844,812 pounds of ground beef patties over E. coli
fears, days after a similar move felled the nation's biggest maker of
frozen hamburgers.

Closely held Cargill sold the frozen patties that might contain the
bacteria nationwide, the company said yesterday. The meat was produced
by Cargill Meat Solutions in Butler, Wisconsin, from Aug. 9 through
Aug. 17 and sold mostly to restaurants.

Three cases of illness surfaced in Minnesota, alerting Wayzata,
Minnesota-based Cargill and state health officials, the USDA said. E.
coli causes severe diarrhea and dehydration and can be deadly in the
elderly, infants and people with weak immune systems.

Last weekend, Topps Meat Co. recalled 21.7 million pounds of ground
beef, the nation's second-largest beef recall ever, because of E.
coli. At least 30 people were sickened in eight states. The private
company closed its doors Oct. 5 after almost seven decades in business. ~snip~

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aq7_faUI_Vzs&refer=news

[crim son]

8. Gee, maybe that's why we've all been feeling like shit the last month,

stomach-wise. I kept saying it felt like when I got Montezuma's revenge in Mexico, just the same. My daughter had it too.

[Trillo]

10. Cooking ground beef to 71°C (160°F) is supposed to kill E. coli 0157:H7

http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/cause/ecolie.shtml

160°F is considered "well done", that's what it says on our meat thermometer. When I cook a meatloaf, I'll often let the internal temp rise to 165-170°F, just for good measure.

[HereSince1628]

12. And isn't the shiga toxin they produce heat-labile?

Not being a microbiologist I'm asking rather than stating. I think I read somewhere that the toxins are destroyed by heat.

[Trillo]

13. I'm not a microbiologist, but the question is intriguing.

Wikipedia seems to have an entry for the particular strain listed in the reuter's news item, "E. coli 0157:H7." Wikipedia claims,

E. coli O157:H7 is markedly different from other pathogenic E. coli, as well. In particular, the O157:H7 serotype is negative for invasiveness (sereny test), elaborates no colonization factors (CFA/I or CFA/II), Doesn't produce heat stable or heat labile toxins and is non-hemolytic.

The reuter's news item claims:

"No illnesses have been associated with this product," John Keating, president of Cargill Regional Beef, said in a statement. "We are working closely with the USDA to remove the product from the marketplace."

I wonder if there are creative accounting benefits (or legal loopholes) with such corporate recalls. Just yesterday there was an e. coli recall for 'frozen pizzas', that typically would be baked in a 400 degree oven for some period of time.

Can recalls be used to cover other financial losses or can there be another motivation for the rash of recalls?

[Kali]

11. Don't buy the shit!

buy roasts and have them ground, or better yet buy from some small local producer.

Pre-made patties - even without e-coli contamination have to be some of the grossest meat out there.

[madmom]

15. a girl I work with has a little brother in the hospital right now with

e coli poisoning(?) he was away at camp and got sick don't know what he ate.

[snarky08]

16. bag the burger

Not that I would wish sickness on smiley happy people, but most people are beginning to be as concerned about e coli contamination as they are about the common cold. I wonder at what point will the significance of virtually daily recalls on meat, produce and toys wake up people. I stopped eating hamburger in 2001, thanks to an essay in the High Country News that made reference to piss poor monitoring by the FDA and the risk of mad cow disease. I don't miss it (the burger) and don't crave it. Alas, something else will wreck me since it's not simply about the meat; it's about the pathetic system.

[NYC]

17. It is definitely the system.

I don't know how many years it has been since I've eaten a cheeseburger, but I do miss it.

Welcome to DU. :hi:

[NYC]

18. Who disposes of the contaminated meat, and how?

I don't think I've ever heard. Does anyone know?