E.Coli Beef Burgers Recall

Today in California there has been a major recall of ground beef after a number of children in the Napa area became sick with E. Coli

The recall announcement was made the California health officials and it is relevant to five US states. The states were the recall is being carried out are Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon and California.

The alarm bell was raised when children living in Napa County contracted the E.Coli poisoning from food they ate at two different Little League areas, St. Helena and Calistoga.

Over 100,000 frozen beef patties are being taken off shelves and consumers are asked to check their freezers for the contaminated product

The children's illness' fist came to light in early April and it is reported that all of the sick children have since recovered.

Richwood Meat Co produced the meat that is the subject of the recall. The frozen beef patties were produced around one year ago. They contain a date indication that says "4-28-06" or "118-6" according to the president of Richwood Meat Co, Mike Wood.

The frozen patties were sold by a number of food stores and distributors including WinCo and Vons.

The burgers that were sold at the two Little League fields was bought at Salami Lady's Cash & Carry and sold at he field by a food stand. Health officials tested remaining burgers that were still frozen at the store and also in possession of the food stand sellers. Both samples came back positive for E.Coli bacteria.

A representative for the Napa County health officials said that under no circumstances should the meat be eaten, "Do not eat it. No matter if you cook it until it's black, do not eat it."

All of the sick children were lucky not to suffer the worse possible effects of E.Coli such as kidney failure.

If you are concerned about this and would like to see if the potentially contaminated meat is in your freezer look for the following brands: Chef's Pride, Golbon and Richwood, California Pacific Associates, C&C Distributing, Ritz Food Service, Blackwood Farms and Fireriver. The frozen beef patties with these brands are the product that is being recalled.

To avoid contracting E.Coli poisoning make sure to cook meat properly and thoroughly wash fruit and vegetables. The bacteria can also be spread by contact with animals that have E.Coli or consuming dairy products that have not been treated.

E.Coli poisoning can cause diarrhoea, stomach pains and even a fever. I can take from 1 to 3 days for symptoms to appear.

Sources
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/healthnews.php?newsid=68510
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-burgers21apr21,1,1914709.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_5718813