Beef Producers Fight E. coli

December 2007

Beef producers across America all have one thing in common – they struggle to keep E. coli poisoning out of the fresh meat that stocks supermarkets nationwide. In 2007, beef recalls due E. coli have already shot up 250 percent compared to 2006.

As of November 2007, the US Department of Agriculture announced its 20th beef recall of the year. That’s 12 more than 2006 and 15 more than 2005. The shocking increase in recalls comes amid efforts to reduce the presence of E. coli bacterium during meat processing.

Despite the hard work of many beef producers, 2007 still saw the second largest beef recall of all-time, as Topps recalled 21.7 million pounds of frozen ground beef. More recently, Pennsylvania-based Cargill – considered an industry leader in combating E. coli – recalled hundreds of thousands of pounds of beef that sickened at least 12 people.