Ground Beef Recall The USDA says Valley Meats LLC, of Coal Valley, Ill., is recalling approximately 95,898 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli. You can check out the labels here (PDF) and the recall notice here. [USDA]
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I like that they only choose to spell “Patty” correct in SOME of the labels. That there is the sign of a company with stringent quality control standards.
I stopped eating ground beef a few E. coli recalls ago.
What kind of people does the beef industry hire for their quality control? This doesn’t seem to happen with chicken, lamb, etc.
@Shoelace: It’s not who they hire, it’s the way beef is processed.
@youbastid: How is it processed differently from lamb?
@Shoelace: I’m not quite sure how lamb is processed, but the way most beef factories operate is at a pace far too frenzied for the workers. There is a very precise method of tearing out the intestinal tract of cows and oftentimes the workers are rushed to just do it quickly, so intestines burst and blow shit all over the carcass, which is then ground into the beef.
I guess cooking the meat was too hard for people? So the solution is to destroy a ton of food.
@Corporate_guy: I would think there was some tolerance for E. Coli, like parts per million calculations, that it has to blow before the USDA “strongly requests” they recall.
@Corporate_guy:
It irritates me to no end, but apparently the reason is that even if they cook the meat, people, being slovenly beasts, don’t realize that they’ve touched the meat, and then touch everything else in the kitchen, thereby contaminating the whole place.
Then everyone gets sick, and they can’t figure out why, despite the meat having been cooked, and even if they washed the cutting board, or whatever.
@subtlefrog: It irritates me to no end that now the standard is that all meat has to be “cooked thoroughly” to be safe. High quality meat can basically be eaten raw. Burgers should be able to be eaten medium rare safely. This crap meat, you have to char until it’s a brick for it to be safe. That’s ok for SOME meat, but it shouldn’t be the standard.
@subtlefrog: And also with this crap, no matter how well you cook it, you’re still eating shit. That’s not awesome either.
@youbastid: Ever toured a water treatment plant?
@subtlefrog: It’s disturbing to know people touch raw meat without washing their hands thoroughly before and after.
@Corporate_guy: I HATE well-done beef. It’s dry and nasty. I want my burgers and my steaks medium-rare or medium, depending on mood and where we’re eating (there is a place that has freshly ground, organic burgers and omg…they are the best medium-rare…mmm).
@nakedscience: Organic. You know that is a meaningless word, right? Sounds like they roped you in with some kind of placebo effect.
Regardless, I’ll take my chances. You can pry a hamburger I am eating from my cold dead hands.
I don’t think I would want to eat something called “flavor burst” anyway.
@Wubbytoes: I imagine it’d be as invigorating as eating a hamburger while getting punched in the face.
@Applekid: Seriously, did they get their marketing people from Trident?
@Wubbytoes: The “flavor burst” is that “rockin’ e-coli kick!”
So much for “food safety” huh?
“Stay on topic moose!!”
Oh, right. I returned recalled ground beef patties once a year or two ago, for the same reason. Unopened box. And the company went out of business. Topps.
I’ve been buying roasts and grinding it myself for the past couple of years. I have a stand mixer with a grinder attachment. Not only is it safer, but it can be cheaper too.
Around here, Sam’s Club sells sirloin roasts for around $2.20 per pound, which is cheaper than any of their ground beef. And I scored some round eye roasts on sale at $1.99/lb the other week. I also buy pork roasts ($1.14/lb or so) and make my own sausage.
“Flavor Burst”?
Funny. The ingredients of the Flavor Burst burger include tomato powder, onion powder, various forms of sugar, vinegar, spices and salt. That’s ketchup!
e coli doesn’t go away if you cook it long enough?
@rawsteak: Who wants a well-done burger?!
@rawsteak: The bigger concern might be from increased risk of cross-contamination or if the E. Coli produce dangerous endotoxins, which wouldn’t break-down from regular cooking preparation.