OAN Staff Blake Wolf
5:54 PM – Thursday, November 21, 2024
Roughly 167,000 pounds of fresh and frozen ground beef products have been recalled over concerns of possible E. coli contamination, the Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced.
The investigation was initiated after at least fifteen people reported having symptoms between November 2nd to November 10th, leading the Minnesota Agriculture Department and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to find a link between the reported illnesses and a Detroit-based meat distributor, Wolverine Packing Co.
“FSIS was notified of illnesses on November 13, 2024, and working in conjunction with Minnesota Departments of Agriculture and Health, FSIS determined that there was a link between the ground beef products from Wolverine Packing Co. and this illness cluster,” the FSIS announcement read.
Following the department’s testing, FSIS released a statement revealing that the beef sample tested from the Wolverine Packing Company did in fact contain E. coli bacteria.
“On November 20, 2024, a ground beef sample collected by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture as part of an outbreak investigation tested positive for E. coli O157. To date, 15 case-patients have been identified in one state with illness onset dates ranging from November 2, 2024, to November 10, 2024. FSIS continues to work with the Minnesota Departments of Agriculture and Health on this investigation,” the FSIS statement continued.
The beef products were shipped nationwide and the FSIS revealed that the recalled products contain the number “EST. 2574B” inside of the USDA inspection mark.
Additionally, the recalled products have a “use by” date of November 14th, and the frozen products have a “use by” date of October 22nd.
“FSIS is concerned that some product may be in restaurant refrigerators or freezers. Restaurants are urged not to serve these products. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase,” it added.
Common symptoms of E. coli infections include severe dehydration, diarrhea, bloody stool, abdominal cramps, and in severe cases, even kidney failure.
Wolverine Packing Company responded to the findings, revealing that it “has notified all customers that received product encompassed by the recall.”
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