US-based meat processor Topps Meat Co. has expanded the product recall it announced last week amid an E. coli outbreak linked to the company.
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Topps extended the recall to include all products with a “sell by” or “best if used by” date between 25 September, 2007 and 25 September, 2008.
Topps issued the first recall of more than 330,000 pounds of frozen ground beef from stores across the US last week following an investigation into an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak, which was found to have been caused by consumption of Topps ground beef products.
The enlarged recall will now extend to some 21.7m pounds of ground beef products, the company said.
“Because the health and safety of our consumers is our top priority, we are taking these expansive measures,” said Topps vice president of operations Geoffrey Livermore. “Topps is continuing to work with the USDA, state departments of health, retailers and distributors to ensure the safety of our consumers. Additionally, we have augmented our internal quality control procedures with microbiologists and food safety experts. We sincerely regret any inconvenience and concerns this may cause our consumers.”
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By GlobalDataTopps said products affected by the recall were distributed to retail grocery stores and foodservice companies throughout the US. But it added that, based on usual consumption patterns, it believed that the vast majority of the recalled product had already been consumed.
Consumers have been informed that they can remove the sell-by date and UPC code from the packaging and send it back to Topps for a full refund. Topps added that this was the first product recall in its 65-year history.
