The recalled ground beef and hamburger patties were sold to restaurants in the Cincinnati area, but the company did not say which restaurants. Each clear plastic bag and label bear the establishment number “EST. 1188” within the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s mark of inspection.

J.B. Meats said it was notified on Aug. 12 of an investigation of two E. coli O157:H7 illnesses. The Cincinnati Health Department reported there were two patients who became ill on July 20 and 21 that may have resulted from ground beef consumed on July 16 and 17, the company said.

Epidemiological and microbiological evidence points to a possible link between the ground beef products produced by J.B. Meats on July 15 and the illnesses in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company said the recall is precautionary, as there has been no conclusive link between the illnesses and the ground beef produced at the facility.

E. coli O157 can cause hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), both severe illnesses that can cause kidney failure, central nervous system damage (seizures, stroke, paralysis, etc.), heart failure, pancreatitis and death.

Our attorneys are investigating the outbreak, which has been linked to ground beef products from McNees Meats and Wholesale, LLC, in North Branch, Michigan. In response to the outbreak, McNees Meats recalled about 2,200 pounds of ground beef that was distributed through the company store at 6267 Old State Road, North Branch, MI, and also sold to retail establishments and restaurants in Armada, Lapeer and North Branch, Mich.

The list of recalled McNees ground beef products includes:

• 1 and 10-lb. clear packages of “McNees Ground Beef Bulk.”
• 1 to1.5-lb., approximate weight clear plastic bags of “McNees Ground beef patties.”
• 1-lb. packages of “McNees Ground Round.”
• 1 and 2-lb packages of “McNees Ground Beef Bulk” sold in red and white plastic bags.

People who have been sickened in an E. coli outbreak may be able to file an E. coli lawsuit and recover money for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering and other damages. The E. coli attorneys at Pritzker Olsen have recovered millions of dollars on behalf of E. coli victims and victims of other food borne pathogens.

Contact the E. coli lawyers at Pritzker Olsen for a free case evaluation >>

The E. coli outbreak hurt business to the point where Peppa’s owner closed the restauran Friday, for good, KITV 4 News reported. Owner Chong Kim told the news station that  people stopped coming to the restaurant after the E. coli outbreak . On April 1, the state health department temporarily suspended Peppa’s permit, shutting it down after four people who had eaten there were sickened with E. coli 0157:H7 infections. It was only closed for a day, but seven illnesses ultimately were associated with the outbreak. An investigation found the restaurant’s kitchen staff mixed raw meat with vegetables, which can spread bacteria. KITV said Peppa’s has two other locations in the Honolulu area that remain open.

Symptoms of E. coli infections usually show up three to four days after a person eats contaminated food, although in some cases it can be as long as eight days. Estimates are imprecise, but microbiologists guess that more than 70,000 Americans fall ill every year from E. coli bacterial infections. Of those infected, 5 to 15 percent develop life-threatening HUS E. coli, or hemolytic uremic syndrome, the leading cause of kidney failure in children and the leading cause of E. coli deaths. HUS is a disease that attacks a person’s red blood cells and causes serious illness including kidney failure, strokes, paralysis, blood clots, heart problems and other damage. Children, the elderly or others who have weakened immune systems are the most susceptible. E. coli O157:H7 is a strain of E. coli that produces large quantities of a potent toxin, called Shiga toxin, that forms in the intestine and gets taken up into a person’s bloodstream.

City health officials have since reported that water samples from the restaurant are now coming back clean, and Fralo’s is testing the restaurant’s water supply daily as an extra precaution. According to Sarah Gateswood, a spokesperson for San Antonio Water System:

“It is very hard to determine because there are so many factors that can impact water quality especially from a well, such as septic tanks. We know the area has a lot of septic tanks. The most important thing is for people to rest assured that the tests we are taking are coming back clean.”

E. coli Water Contamination in Restaurants

E. coli attorneys and food safety lawyers at Pritzker Olsen law firm are investigating illnesses potentially related to this outbreak. “By serving food to the public, a restaurant is essentially guaranteeing that the food product is safe,” said food safety attorney Elliot Olsen. “If it turns out that any portion of that food is not safe, and people become sick as a result, the restaurant can be held responsible.”

E. coli poisoning can lead to serious complications such as hemolytic uremic syndrome, or E. coli HUS, which attacks blood cells and can cause kidney failure and even death. The lawyers at Pritzker Olsen represent clients who have become sick with E. coli from drinking contaminated water, and encourage anyone who thinks they may have become sick from E. coli in water to visit the doctor and get tested for the pathogen.

Sources:

http://www.ksat.com/news/24735142/detail.html

http://www.saws.org/latest_news/NewsDrill.cfm?news_id=702

• Inspections are just “snapshots in time;” what happens on just one day may or may not be indicative of restaurant cleanliness throughout the course of a year
• With so much riding on a sanitation score, the relationship between inspector and restaurant will become contentious and lead to much more administrative action
• Posting restaurant scores is punitive; it’s better to encourage (one inspector from a small town said their practice is to publicize good scores)
• Many low risk violations may lower a score even though there is no real threat to the public.

My reaction to the inspector’s comments is that those concerns can be address in a uniform and fair grading system. And the system can be fine-tuned over time. Overall, the public’s right to know trumps any perceived unfairness to restaurants. Transparency is rarely a bad thing.

The Honolulu, Hawaii E. coli outbreak associated with Peppa’s Korean BBQ may be related to food handling violations that closed the restaurant down yesterday.  According to the Honolulu Advisor:

Health officials said the department confirmed that at least four of the seven actually ate at the Ke’eaumoku-area fast-food establishment between March 2 and March 23, when the bacterial infections occurred. . . .

“We don’t often get clusters of cases like this,” said Health Department spokeswoman Janice Okubo.

After it was confirmed that some of those sickened by E. coli 0157:H7 had eaten at Peppa’s, state Sanitation Branch inspectors were dispatched to the restaurant, where they observed food-handling violations, Okubo said.

Those violations, coupled with confirmation of the Peppa’s connection, caused inspectors to issue a “notice of permit suspension” and a cease-and-desist order against the restaurant at about 10 a.m. yesterday, Okubo said.

Our law firm is investigating this E. coli outbreak associated with Peppa’s Korean BBQ.  To contact an E. coli lawyer at Pritzker Olsen, please call 1-888-377-8900 (TOLL FREE), email Attorney Fred Pritzker or submit our online form for a free consultation.

Keywords: E. coli, Peppa’s Korean BBQ, lawsuit, Honolulu E. coli, lawyer, attorney, Peppa’s Korean Barbecue, hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), thrombotic thrombocytopenic pupura (TTP), child E. coli, restaurant liability.

According to the health department, the Honolulu-area E. coli victims were diagnosed from March 2 -23.  The dates of diagnosis suggest that the source of the E. coli is meat that was purchased by the restaurant prior to March 2 and frozen for later use.  Freezing temperatures do not kill E. coli bacteria.  Our guess is that the cases of reported (emphasis here on reported) illness are low because the restaurant used inconsistent cooking processes that led to some meat not being cooked long enough or hot enough to kill the E. coli bacteria.

If our hypothesis is correct (and this is a hypothesis because the investigation is ongoing), several parties could be liable (legally responsible), including Peppa’s Korean BBQ, the supplier of the meat, the processor of the meat and the slaughterhouse.

When our law firm is hired to represent the victim of an E. coli outbreak, we immediately investigate and take all measures necessary to preserve evidence.  To contact the E. coli lawyers at Pritzker Olsen, call 1-888-377-8900 (TOLL FREE), email Attorney Fred Pritzker or submit our online form for a free consulation.

Keywords: Honolulu E. coli, lawyer, lawsuit, Peppa’s Korean BBQ, ecoli outbreak, hemolytic uremic syndrome, uremia, thrombocytopenia, diarrhea, ate at Peppas Barbacue, E. coli O157:H7.



The news comes two weeks after the beef supplier, National Steak and Poultry, and federal officials announced the recall. Since then, 21 cases of E. coli in 16 states have been linked to this recall, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Nine of these cases required hospitalization and at least one patient contracted life-threatening hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). States with confirmed cases include: California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Washington.

Applebee’s operates about 2,000 locations nationwide; Olive Garden has 695.

“There are thousands of restaurants in question—how many more people will get sick before we see a full and detailed list of restaurants where this beef was distributed?” said food safety attorney Fred Pritzker. “Two weeks is simply too long to wait for this news.”

“As a customer of NSP (National Steak and Poultry) we took immediate action when learning of this recall,” Applebee’s spokeswoman Nancy Mays told Nation’s Restaurant News. Furthermore, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) “does not agree that publicly identifying food service establishments would provide consumers greater protection from the risks associated with tainted meat or poultry.”

It is Pritzker’s opinion that these policies and procedures aren’t enough.

“No matter how many future illnesses might be prevented by removing tainted meat from restaurant menus after cases have been reported, that does nothing for the people who actually got sick,” Pritzker said. “Restaurant chains and food safety officials need to understand that diners have a right to know where and how they became sick.”

Map image from CDC.

Firm Founder and President Fred Pritzker also called on the Oklahoma company to identify which restaurants received steaks potentially contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 that were packaged in October and shipped to restaurants nationwide. The National Steak and Poultry recall covers 248,000 pounds of beef products and at least one large national chain is believed to be a recipient of some of those steaks. The restaurants, too, should identify themselves.

The food safety team at Pritzker Olsen believes the public deserves to know all restaurant locations affected by the recall. The USDA regularly publishes a retail distribution list for all high-risk E. coli recalls, but the National Steak and Poultry outbreak is still active and there is no official listing of where the potentially contaminated steaks were delivered.

A wide variety of National Steak and Poultry steaks currently are associated with a cluster of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, South Dakota and Washington and the investigation is continuing. Several state health departments and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are involved. Health officials have not yet said how many individuals in each state have been sickened in this steak E. coli outbreak.

These health officials are advising people who have signs or symptoms of E. coli poisoning to contact a physician. E. coli O157:H7 causes extremely painful and often bloody diarrhea, which can be followed by the onset of life-threatening hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) (the leading cause of kidney failure in children) or thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP).

This outbreak could have been prevented. For legal information or to assist Pritzker Olsen with its ongoing investigation, contact our firm at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or complete our contact and information form on the side of this web page. An E. coli lawyer will provide you with a free case consultation. We are one of the few law firms in the country practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation and we have recovered tens of millions for our clients while also actively supporting many measures to prevent the spread of these diseases.

Click here to see the full list of steak sizes and varieties involved  in the National Steak and Poultry recall.

The danger of this restaurant steak E. coli outbreak is that many customers like their steak cooked rare or medium rare. Those choices are safe when the steak is intact and unprocessed. But studies have shown that mechanical tenderizing of steak with blades and needles pushes surface E. coli into the meat, where it can be insulated from flames and heat that normally kill the pathogens.

This outbreak should teach the meat and restaurant industries to label tenderized, non-intact steaks as dangerous and inform all customers of the risk of undercooking these cuts of beef. The needle-tenderized and injected steaks should be handled more like ground beef, which is required to be cooked to 160 degrees throughout to kill E. coli O157:H7. This human pathogen can cause life-long damage and health consequences in a significant subset of patients.

As with most E. coli outbreaks associated with steak products, this outbreak appears to be caused by contaminated brine that was injected into non-intact steak.   After brine is injected into a steak, the excess runs off and is used over.  If that brine is contaminated, it will cross-contaminate the steaks into which it is injected.   Because the brine is injected into the steaks, the E. coli bacteria get into the middle of the steak where it may be hard to kill them.

Under federal law that was created in 1999, non-intact beef that is injected with brine is “adulterated” if it is contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.  This means that someone who contracts an E. coli infection from a brine-injected non-intact steak product can sue the manufacturer of that steak product and the restaurant where it was served under strict liability laws.  The E. coli victim does not have to prove negligence on anyone’s part to recover medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering and other damages under strict liability.

Our lawyers represent people sickened by E. coli O157, HUS and TTP throughout the United States.  Our clients have suffered kidney failure, neurological disorders and other serious problems associated with the E. coli infection.  When families come to us, they are faced with huge medical bills and sometimes a lifetime of medical needs.  We help them get the money they need to take care of their loved one.

To contact an E. coli lawyer at Pritzker Olsen, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free), email Attorney Fred Pritzker or submit our online form for a free consultation.