Bad news for meat eaters on the East Coast: A Pennsylvania firm is recalling 29,330 pounds of ground beef because it may be contaminated with Salmonella Enteritidis. But here's the kicker -- this recall is for meat with sell-by dates from over a month ago, so chances are it's not even on store shelves anymore. Instead, it could be inside your freezer.
What's worse, the recall was issued after 33 people got sick apparently from eating the contaminated meat. And figuring out if that ground beef in your freezer is from the contaminated batch is going to be tricky because the beef involved in that recall was re-packaged and sold under different brand names. Ugh, so what can we do?
How's about buying your meat directly from farms, farmers' markets, or just going vegetarian? (I wrote, for the 10,000th time.) I mean, good grief. Meat's crazy in the U.S. We just had a massive meat recall last week. Now there's another? And what's with all that travelling, re-branding, not finding out until after people get sick? That does not inspire confidence in our gigantic, sprawling meat system. You want regular meat inspections to find contamination before it hits stores.
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Anyway, there is a little bit of information you can check to see if your freezer beef is all right. Check the USDA mark of inspection for "EST. 9400" -- that's the number for the recalled beef. The meat was sent to distribution centers in Connecticut, Maine, and New York, but from there the meat apparently found its way to Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. So really, if you live anywhere in the Northeast, you should check your meat.
And of course, there's that little warning we get every time this happens: Cook your meat to an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Get that contaminated meat nice and hot! I think kitchen safety is important. I get that. But wouldn't it be nice if meat could arrive in your home uncontaminated in the first place?
Have you ever gotten sick from contaminated food?
Image via lizzardo/Flickr
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Comments 12
this is a warning with all meat. Wash hands and sufaces. Dont' eat raw or undercooked meat. Nothing new. I dont' know why people freak out.
Please stop using scare tactics and propaganda pieces to recruit people to vegetarianism. It's ridiculous and it's not a good reason to become one.
They are recalling this meat because it could have bacteria that could make you sick? Any meat could be contaminated. They might as well just recall any meat in stores. This only happened because people didnt cook their meat thoroughly. This is the reason meat needs to be cooked all the way through. I really dont think there was any reason to recall it. Its a known fact that raw meat of any kind could be contaminated with salmonella or e-coli.
that's why I buy all my meat from the local farm, where I can go and see how the animals are treated, I can see what they eat and what they do all day
its funny, I only buy meat from local farms. all grass fed, free range, open air, antibiotic and hormone free. Lots of veg from the farmers market and my personal garden. The problem is we still eat fast food. Probably the worst thing you can feed your family. Both from the risk of contaminates and additives.
Yes, it's easy to stop cross contamination if you wash your hands and surfaces and all utensils. Wash your hands after EVERY TIME you handle meat or liquids that contain eggs (like if you're making meatloaf), and cook the food to the proper internal temperature. Duh. We are aware that germs, viruses, and bacteria are here and make the world go round. HEY! did you know your hands contain a small percentage of staph on them at all times? Just food for thought, no pun intended. :)