The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced the recall this week of 22,912 pounds of raw ground beef distributed in three states.
CS Beef Packers company leaders note that the beef was produced under USDA, FSIS federal regulations and supervision.
“All raw materials tested Negative for E. coli O157:H7,” they said. “Each lot yielded acceptable results with no pathogen being found. The issue was discovered due to FSIS testing at a downstream customer a few weeks after production which showed presence of E. coli 0145.”
The FSIS describes E. coli O145 and O157 as types of Shiga Toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), which can cause consumers to become ill within 3 to 4 days of exposure to the organism.
However, company leaders said there have been no confirmed reports of illness due to consumption of the meat to date.
“CS Beef Packers abides by a robust Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) program that effectively addresses all food safety aspects of the manufacturing process as per FSIS Federal Register Notices,” they said. “This is further verified by multiple in-house audits and independent 3rd party audits.”
The products subject to recall bear the establishment number EST. 630 inside the USDA mark of inspection on the outside of the case and printed directly onto the clear packaging.
CS Beef Packers added that it has 10 full-time USDA and FSIS inspectors or supervisory staff on the premises during production hours, closely monitoring each step of the process.
“The CS Beef plant is one of the newest, most modern, state of the art, harvest facilities in the nation which has over 800 valued team members,” company leaders said.
Most people infected with STEC O145 experience vomiting and develop diarrhea that is often bloody.
Some illnesses last longer and can be more severe. Infection is usually diagnosed by testing of a stool sample.
The FSIS advises consumers to safely prepare their raw meat products, including fresh and frozen, and only consume ground beef that has been cooked to a temperature of 160 degrees F.
The only way to confirm that ground beef is cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer that measures internal temperatures.