Tag: Salmonella Heidelberg

Cargill Recalls 36 Million Pounds of Ground Turkey

Cargill has announced an immediate recall of fresh and frozen ground turkey meat produced at its Springdale, Arkansas production facility from February 20, 2011 through August 2nd.

The turkey meat, which may be contaminated with Salmonella Heidelberg, is being recalled as a result of Cargill’s “...internal investigation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) information that became available on Aug. 1, 2011, as well as an ongoing USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) investigation into multiple illnesses from Salmonella Heidelberg.”

Cargill’s recall announcement continues as follows:

Additionally, Cargill has suspended production of ground turkey products at its Springdale, Ark., turkey processing facility until it is able to determine the source of the Salmonella Heidelberg and take corrective actions. Other turkey products produced at Springdale are not part of the recall. Cargill owns four turkey processing facilities in the U.S. and no products from the other three are involved in the recall.

“While facts continue to be gathered, and currently there is no conclusive answer regarding the source of Salmonella Heidelberg contamination, given our concern for what has happened, and our desire to do what is right for our consumers and customers, we are voluntarily removing our ground turkey products from the marketplace,” said Steve Willardsen, president of Cargill’s turkey processing business. “Additionally, we have suspended ground turkey production at our Arkansas facility until the source can be pinpointed and actions to address it are taken. Public health and the safety of consumers cannot be compromised. It is regrettable that people may have become ill from eating one of our ground turkey products and, for anyone who did, we are truly sorry. We go to great lengths to ensure the food we produce is safe and we fully understand that people expect to be able to consume safe food, each serving, every time.”

“Suspending production until we can determine the source of the Salmonella Heidelberg at our Arkansas facility, and take corrective action, is the right thing to do,” stated Willardsen. “We are closely examining every aspect of our production process and have identified enhancements to our procedures in our efforts to ensure safe food. Eliminating food borne illness is always our goal.”

 Here is a complete list of the recalled products, as provided by Cargill:

The products involved are Ground Turkey. All packages include Est. P-963 on the label. Products are listed below:

Ground Turkey Chubs – Use or Freeze by Dates of 2/20/11 through 8/23/11

  • 10 lbs. Chubs of Honeysuckle White Fresh Natural Lean Ground Turkey with Natural Flavorings
  • 10 lbs. Chubs of Unbranded Ground Turkey w/ Natural Flavoring 2 Pack
  • 80 oz. (5 lbs.) chubs of Riverside Ground Turkey with Natural Flavoring
  • 10 lb. Chub of Natural Lean Ground Turkey with Natural Flavorings
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) chubs of Fresh Lean HEB Ground Turkey 93/7
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) chubs of Fresh HEB Ground Turkey 85/15
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) chubs of Honeysuckle White 93/7 Fresh Ground Turkey with Natural Flavoring
  • 4-1 Pound Packages of Honeysuckle White Ground Turkey with Natural Flavoring Value Pack
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) chubs of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Fresh Ground Turkey
  • 48 oz. (3 lb.) chubs of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Fresh Ground Turkey

85% Ground Turkey – Use or Freeze by Dates of 2/20/11 through 8/23/11

  • 19.2 oz. (1.2 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Ground Turkey
  • 19.2 oz. (1.2 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White Taco Seasoned Ground Turkey Colored with Paprika
  • 20 oz. (1 lb. 4 oz.) trays of Safeway Fresh Ground Turkey with Natural Flavorings * 15% Fat
  • 19.2 oz. (1 lb. 3.2 oz.) trays of Kroger Ground Turkey Fresh 85/15
  • 48.0 oz. (3 lb.) trays of Kroger Ground Turkey Fresh 85/15
  • 48.0 oz. (3 lbs.) trays of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Ground Turkey Family Pack
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Ground Turkey
  • 19.2 oz. (1.2 lbs.) trays of Honeysuckle White Seasoned Italian Style Ground Turkey with Natural Flavorings
  • 20 oz. (1.25 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Ground Turkey (NOTE: Sold in Texas only at Randall’s and Tom Thumb, Use or Freeze by 03/12/11 through 05/05/11)

93% Ground Turkey – Use or Freeze by Dates of 2/20/11 through 8/23/11

  • 19.2 oz. (1.20 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White 93/7 Lean Ground Turkey
  • 48 oz. (3.0 lbs.) trays of Honeysuckle White 93/7 Lean Ground Turkey Family Pack
  • 19.2 oz. (1.2 lb.) trays of Fit & Active Lean Ground Turkey 93/07
  • 19.2 oz. (1.2 lbs.) trays of Giant Eagle Ground Turkey Fresh & Premium Lean
  • 19.2 oz. (1 lb 3.2 oz.) trays of Kroger Ground Turkey Fresh Lean 93/7
  • 20 oz. (1.25 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White 93/7 Lean Ground Turkey

Ground Patties

  • 16.0 oz. (1 lb.) trays of Honeysuckle White Ground Turkey Patties
  • Use or Freeze by Dates of 2/20/11 through 8/23/11
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) trays of Kroger Ground Seasoned Turkey Patties Fresh 85/15
  • Use or Freeze by Dates of 2/20/11 through 8/23/11
  • 16.0 oz. (1 lb.) trays of Shady Brook Farms Ground Turkey Burgers with Natural Flavoring
  • NOTE: ONLY THE FOLLOWING USE OR FREEZE BY DATES ARE AFFECTED: 07/09/11, 07/10/11, 07/11/11, 07/15/11, 07/16/11, 07/21/11, 07/22/11, 07/24/11, 08/01/11 AND 08/04/11

Frozen Ground Turkey – Production Dates of 2/20/11 through 8/2/11

  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) chubs of Honeysuckle White Ground Turkey with Natural Flavoring
  • 16 oz. (1 lb.) chubs of Spartan Ground Turkey
  • 48 oz. (3 lb.) chubs of Honeysuckle White 85/15 Ground Turkey
  • 40 lb. Bulk Packed Ground Turkey with Natural Flavoring For Food Service Use Only
I expect the supermarket recall notices to begin appearing tomorrow.

Cargill To Recall Ground Turkey

Associated Press and Bill Marler are reporting that Cargill Value Added Meats – Retail (Springdale, AR) will announce a recall of 35,709,675 pounds – that is, 17,855 tons – of fresh, ground turkey meat before the day is out.

The recalled turkey meat may be linked to an outbreak of Salmonella Heidelberg that has sickened 77 people across the US since the beginning of March. One person – a resident of Sacramento County, California – has died and 38% of the outbreak victims for whom the information is available were hospitalized. Cases have been reported from 26 states so far; the outbreak is on-going and nation-wide.

I have just instructed my 80-something-year-old Aunt Anne to toss out her ground turkey meatloaf. She’s also tossing the recipe.

USDA’s Failed Salmonella Policy

Denmark takes its Salmonella seriously – even in raw poultry.

Since the beginning of this year, Denmark has recorded seven recalls of raw poultry products due to Salmonella contamination. The recalled chicken and turkey products originated in Brazil (1 recall), Denmark (1 recall), Hungary (3 recalls), Germany (1 recall), and Poland (1 recall).

There were NO Salmonella outbreaks associated with or triggering any of these recalls. Just the detection of Salmonella in a sample of the raw poultry meat. And, in case anyone hasn’t noticed, only one of the recalled items was domestic – raw turkey products that were suspected of being contaminated with Salmonella. Not confirmed. Merely suspected.

Things are different in the USA. USDA accepts – indeed, expects – to find Salmonella in a significant fraction of raw poultry samples. In the fourth quarter of 2010, 4.2% of turkeys, 9.5% of broiler chickens, 9% of raw ground turkey samples and nearly 23% of raw ground chicken samples analyzed under USDA’s HACCP Verification Testing Program were positive for Salmonella.

It’s clear that USDA’s Salmonella policy is not working. CDC has identified two outbreaks of antibiotic-resistant Salmonella illnesses this year – Salmonella Hadar associated with Jennie-O turkey burgers and Salmonella Heidelberg believed to be linked to ground turkey – that are associated with raw turkey meat. In 2010, an outbreak of Salmonella Chester illnesses was traced to contaminated Marie Callender frozen entrées. And in 2007, ConAgra (Banquet Foods) frozen pot pies were responsible for more than 270 illnesses and at least 65 hospitalizations.

We cannot even rely on USDA’s reported incidence levels of Salmonella in broiler and turkey carcasses, because the agency’s sampling method is badly flawed. One might almost conclude that the procedure was designed to underreport the true incidence of Salmonella in our raw poultry.

This is how USDA samples poultry carcasses for Salmonella testing (from the FSIS Laboratory Guidebook):

4.5.6 Whole Bird Rinses

Due to differences between sample types/sizes (e.g. chicken vs. turkey carcasses), follow instructions given in the specific program protocol.

a. For chicken carcasses, aseptically drain excess fluid from the carcass and transfer the carcass to a sterile Stomacher 3500 bag, or equivalent.

b. Pour 400 ml (or other volume specified in program protocol) of BPW into the cavity of the carcass contained in the bag.

c. Rinse the bird inside and out with a rocking motion for one minute (ca. 35 RPM). This is done by grasping the broiler carcass in the bag with one hand and the closed top of the bag with the other. Rock with a reciprocal motion in about an 18-24 inch arc, assuring that all surfaces (interior and exterior of the carcass) are rinsed.

d. Transfer the sample rinse fluid to a sterile container.

e. Use 30 ± 0.6 ml of the sample rinse fluid obtained above for Salmonella analysis. Add 30 ± 0.6 ml of sterile BPW and mix well.

f. Incubate at 35 ± 2C for 20-24 h.

g. Proceed to Section 4.6 to continue the cultural analysis or refer to MLG 4C for use of the BAX® PCR Assay.

Here are my problems with USDA’s method:

  • The first step in the procedure is to throw away excess fluid from the carcass – the very material that is most likely to contain Salmonella.
  • The carcass is rinsed with 400 ml (about 13.5 fluid ounces) of liquid – no problem there, if all of the liquid was used in the test. But USDA only uses 30 ml – less than 10% – of the rinse liquid for the Salmonella test.

In essence, USDA has dumbed down its Salmonella test, reducing the sensitivity of the test to less than 10% of what it should be – and easily could be.

USDA is fooling itself if the agency truly believes that its Salmonella data are valid. And it is misleading the US consumer.

The technology is available to address the problem of Salmonella in poultry. Just ask Denmark, or any of the Scandinavian countries.

The technology is available to test for Salmonella in poultry effectively. Just ask any non-USDA food microbiology lab.

It’s time to stop messing around with this food safety time bomb.