Friday, October 10, 2008

Nicaraguan beef prompts three E. coli-related recalls

Beef imported from Nicaragua is involved in three separate recalls of frozen beef trim that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced.

The recalls affect approximately 20,460 pounds of frozen beef trim from A.C.S. Meyners Ltda. in Ponte Verde, Fla.; approximately 4,200 pounds of frozen beef trim from Astro Meats & Seafood Inc. in Miami; and approximately 2,340 pounds of frozen beef trim from Colorado Food Products in Greenwood Village, Colo.

Subject to recall are 60-pound bulk boxes of "BM-95 BONELESS BEEF." Each shipping container bears the establishment number "Nicaragua 4" inside the Nicaraguan mark of inspection. The shipping label bears the item number "00003," and pack date of "8-19-08."

The products were produced on Aug. 19, 2008, exported to the United States and then sent to distributors and establishments in California, Indiana, Wisconsin, New York and Pennsylvania. The products were sent to establishments for further processing and will likely not bear the establishment number "Nicaragua 4" on products available for direct consumer purchase.

The problem was discovered through FSIS microbiological sampling of imported product from a foreign establishment that was then sent to multiple importers of record in the United States. The agency has received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of this product.

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