56 Tons of Beef Recalled over Link to 156 E. coli O103 Illnesses in 10 States

SEATTLE, April 24, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Marler Clark, the food safety law firm, is investigating the E. coli outbreak linked to Colorado Premium Foods in Georgia. FSIS reported late last night that K2D Foods, doing business as (DBA) Colorado Premium Foods, a Carrolton, Ga. establishment, is recalling approximately 113,424 pounds of raw ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O103. This is a Class I Recall.

The raw ground beef items were produced on March 26, March 29, April 2, April 5, April 10, and April 12, 2019. The following products are subject to recall:

• Two 24-lb. vacuum-packed packages in cardboard boxes containing raw "GROUND BEEF PUCK" with "Use Thru" dates of 4/14/19, 4/17/19, 4/20/19, 4/23/19, 4/28/19, and 4/30/19.

According to the CDC, a total of 156 people infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O103 have been reported from 10 states – Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, Mississippi, Georgia and Florida.

"It shows the dedication of the staffs of FSIS, CDC and the many state agencies involved in this investigation, that this recall was announce late tonight," said William Marler, food safety attorney and publisher of Food Safety News. "Given the numbers of people sickened with E. coli O103 and the number of states involved, I expect the scope of the recall to expand in the coming hours. However, we are lucky that the severity of the illnesses is less than what we would see with more virulent stains of other non-O157 STEC and STEC O157:H7," added Marler.

Many clinical laboratories do not test for non-O157 STEC, such as O103 because it is harder to identify than STEC O157:H7. People can become ill from STECs 2–8 days (average of 3–4 days) after exposure to the organism.

E. coli O103, is one of the strains referred to as the "Big Six." The six have been linked to a growing number of foodborne illnesses, prompting the U.S. Department of Agriculture to add them as an adulterant (after a petition was filed by Marler Clark in 2009) and to their test regimen in 2012. Routine verification testing for the presence of STEC serogroups O26, O45, O103, O111, O121 and O145 is required in raw beef manufacturing trimmings and other raw ground beef components produced domestically and imported.

Fortunately, outbreaks of E. coli O103 are rare. From the CDC and NORS dataset:

The Marler Clark E. coli lawyers have unmatched experience representing victims of E. coli and HUS. We have represented hundreds of victims of E. coli outbreaks traced to foods such as hamburgers, spinach, raw milk, water, and food served at restaurants. The Marler Clark E. coli lawyers are the only lawyers in the nation with a practice focused exclusively on plaintiff foodborne illness litigation.

Our E. coli lawyers have represented victims of notable E. coli outbreaks such as the 2006 Dole Spinach E. coli outbreak, the 2007 Cargill beef E. coli outbreak, and the landmark 1993 Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak.

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SOURCE Marler Clark, The Nation's Food Safety Law Firm