Cargill Hamburger E. coli Recall and Outbreak
Two people from Maine and one from New York have confirmedE. coli 026 infections from identical bacteria and their illnesses have been convincingly associated with Cargill hamburger meat recalled by the company early today.
This Cargill hamburger E. coli recall and outbreak is under active investigation by the USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health authorities, including agencies in Maine and New York.
The Maine Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources notified FSIS of the E. coli 026 illness cluster on August 5. People began getting sick June 24. The hamburger was produced by Cargill June 11 and shipped to distribution centers in Connecticut and Maryland for further distribution. The products had a use-by or freeze-by date of July 1.
E. coli 026 produces shiga toxins in humans that cause serious harm by attacking red blood cells, frequently causing kidney failure. E. coli 0157:H7 is the most prevalent shiga toxin-producing type of E. coli, but E. coli 026 is just as dangerous and also can cause heart problems, brain damage, paralysis, central nervous system disorder and anemia.
Health adults usually can withstand an infection, but young children, the elderly and people with healthy immune systems can fall seriously ill or die. Children under 5 years old, in particular, are susceptible to a complication known as hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). HUS happens in 5 to 15 percent of infections and usually becomes apparent soon after initial symptoms of bloody diarrhea and painful stomach cramps subside.
E. coli 0157:H7 is banned from ground beef, but E. coli 026 and other types are not.
This is a shameful weakness in the food safety system that law firm PritzkerOlsen, P.A. is actively involved in trying to change, but it has no affect on filing a Cargill E. coli lawsuit. If you or a loved one has legal questions about compensation for health care expense, travel, pain, suffering and other harms in the Cargill hamburger E. coli recall, contact an E. coli lawyer at our firm at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or complete the contact form on the side of this Web page.
Our firm has represented E. coli victims against Cargill and other multinational meatpackers and our attorneys have recovered millions of dollars for food poisoning survivors in all manner of foodborne illness litigation.
The Cargill hamburger recalled by FSIS was sold in bulk for retailers to repackage and sell in supermarket meat cases. The retail distribution list includes BJ’s Wholesale Club stores in Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Virginia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey and New York. There is concern some packages remain in home freezers.
Here is the core of the Cargill hamburger E. coli recall announcement.
Cargill Meat Solutions Corp., a Wyalusing, Pa. establishment, is recalling approximately 8,500 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O26. The recall includes 42-pound cases of “GROUND BEEF FINE 90/10,” containing three chubs each weighing 14 pounds. These products have a “use/freeze by” date of “07/01/10,” and an identifying product code of “W69032.” The products subject to recall bears the establishment number “EST. 9400″ inside the USDA mark of inspection.
