Florida Meat Recall

Staff Writer, Oct 05, 2007

On September 25, 2007, 21.7 million pounds of meat were recalled from store shelves when they were found to be contaminated with the E Coli, 0157:H7 bacteria. The contamination was discovered after samples taken by the New York State Department of Heath revealed traces of the bacteria. The New Jersey plant, Topps Meat Co. LLC, where the meat was initially produced is currently working with the USDA in order to find out the how the meat became contaminated as well as the amount of meat which may have been affected by the bacteria.    

National meat recall affects Florida customers. Florida Wal-Mart stores sold the meat produced by Topps Meat Co. LLC as Sam’s Choice brand. Wal-Mart corporate officials stated that all recalled meat products have been removed from the shelves and they have taken extra precautions by programming their registers to deny purchase in case a mistake occurred in the removal process.   

Twenty-nine cases of illness caused by the contaminated meat are currently being investigated. As of now the eight states primarily affected by the recall of the E Coli contaminated meat consist of Florida, Connecticut, Maine, New York, New Jersey, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Out of the twenty-nine cases reported, eleven people had to be hospitalized. According to the CDC, nine cases were reported in New York, eight in Pennsylvania, two in Connecticut, one in Indiana, one in Ohio, one in New Jersey, one in Maine, and one in Florida. Currently no cases of illness have been recorded in Miami-Dade.

Common symptoms of illness caused by this bacterium can include fever, abdominal cramps, dehydration and diarrhea; whereas severe cases can cause kidney failure. For more information on the recall and updated information on the recall itself, please visit www.fsis.usda.gov.