In irony of ironies, the Chicago taqueria that has recently been shut over a salmonella outbreak was found to have stored raw beef above such items as sliced lettuce. Of course, every kitchen chef and trained food service worker knows better – and why? For reasons like this. There is a recall on 60 thousand pounds of ground beef because testing shows it may contain e. coli, a potentially deadly bacteria (like salmonella, only usually worse). Obviously there is no connection between the Carniceria Guanajuato salmonella outbreak in Avondale and the recall of Green Bay Dressed Beef, but the finding of mishandling of raw beef at the taqueria (identified by the Chicago Department of Health), is illuminating.
“Beef is a known carrier of bacteria,” says national e. coli lawyer Ron Simon, “and that is why it must be stored as a potentially dangerous product and why it must be cooked before consuming to an internal temperature of 165 degrees for ground beef. The 165 degrees kills salmonella and E. coli bacteria, along with many others. “
In the current recall, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a recall on September 15th of this year on 58,281 pounds of ground beef. The recall is for Green Bay Dressed Beef, a meat processing company under the American Foods Group. The nearly 60 thousand pounds of ground beef may contain e. coli – and while if properly cooked it would likely be harmless, the company (and the USDA) are not willing to risk the health and safety of the patrons who consume this product. This particular strain of E. coli produces Shiga toxin in humas, leading to extreme amounts of bool in the stool (bloody diarrhea). E. coli in beef is considered an adulterant and it is illegal to buy, sell, or serve food that is adulterated.
American Foods Group reportedly sent the ground beef to its distributors in Georgia, Michigan and Ohio. The adulterated product has a date on it of August 14, 2023; it comes in 10-pound plastic tubes (also known as chubs) – here is a list of the implicated products:
- “90050 BEEF FINE GROUND 81/19” with lot code D123226026
- “20473 BEEF HALAL FINE GROUND 73/27” with lot code D123226027
- “20105 BEEF FINE GROUND 73/27” with lot code D123226027
The establishment number of “EST. 18076” can be seen in the USDA mark.
