Cargill Recalls 16,000 Pounds Of Beef Over Contamination Fears

Meat producer Cargill has recalled more than 16,000 pounds of raw ground beef that may be contaminated with E. coli. The beef was produced on April 26 and 27 and sold through Walmart stores in the eastern US.

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So far there have been no confirmed reports of illness as a result of people eating the beef. Cargill said it had recalled the products “out of an abundance of caution.”

Cargill reported the issue to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) after realizing a “previously segregated product” had been used to make the beef by accident. Neither Cargill nor the FSIS has said what the product was.

Consumer advice from the USDA is to throw away or return the contaminated products to the place of purchase if they haven’t eaten them already.

E. coli contamination

Cargill suspects that the beef may be contaminated with E. coli O157. It is a type of bacterium that can cause severe stomach pain, bloody diarrhoea, and kidney failure. Most people will recover from infection within a week. But in more serious cases, it can cause kidney failure that can be deadly if left untreated.

Read more: Pork, Beef, Salmon — ‘Buried’ Reports Tie Another Meat Product To Increased Superbug Risk

Several foods can become contaminated with E. coli, including raw milk and leafy greens. But most E. coli outbreaks are linked to beef. The bacteria live in the intestines of ruminant animals and enters the environment through their waste. Contamination can occur when the animals are slaughtered and the pathogen is transferred from their skin or from a cut in the intestines to the meat.

When plant products become contaminated with E. coli it’s often because they have been grown using animal manure.