Three E. coli O157:H7 cases and one E. coli death in New Hampshire have been linked to a recall of 545,699 pounds of Fairbank Farms ground beef products. The CDC has a cluster of 26 E. coli cases in 11 states, including New Hampshire, have been associated with the recalled Fairbank Farms hamburger that was sold at Shaws, Price Chopper, Trader Joe’s, Wild Harvest, Lancaster, BJ’s, Giant and Ford Brothers. Some of the Fairbank Farms ground beef products were repackaged or relabeled by the retailers.
“Our law firm is representing a 3-year-old boy that developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) from an E. coli infection. He fought for his life for weeks in the hospital. Most people do not realize how dangerous E. coli poisoning is and that severe cases can result in life-long illness or death,” stated Attorney Fred Pritzker.
“Simply requiring more E. coli testing at slaughterhouses and at processing plants before and after grinding would prevent many E. coli outbreaks linked to ground beef, but federal and state regulators are unwilling to do this. Our law firm continues to advocate for these changes, and we ask the public to write their legislators and demand more testing. Eating a hamburger should not be a high-risk activity.”
State health officials are working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the New Hampshire Grocers Association and the CDC on this investigation, according to a press release from the New Hampshire DHHS:
“It’s possible we may see more cases in the coming days.”
“E. coli is a bacteria that produces a toxin that is potentially deadly to people,” said Dr. Jose Montero, Director of Public Health at DHHS, “especially young children and seniors. People should prepare all meat products safely and cook to a proper temperature to prevent illness. For this recall people should check their freezers for any affected products and throw them away.”
