Safeway Recalls Ground Beef Items for E. coli Made with XL Foods Beef Trim

Safeway stores are recalling a long list of ground beef items that may have been made with beef trim imported from XL Foods in Canada. The meat may be contaminated with E. coli 0157:H7. The USDA issued a Public Health Alert for the beef trim on September 21, 2012.

The recalled products have sell by dates of 9/7/12 to 9/23/12. No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with the consumption of these products. The products were sold in Oregon, Washington, and Montana.

These products are part of a Canadian recall that was expanded five times in the past week. The beef trim was distributed to at least eight states so there will probably be more derivative recalls. Interstate Meat Distributors, Portland’s Morasch Meats, and Detroit’s Wolverine Packing Company may be affected by this beef trim recall.

The recalled products include meatloaf, ground beef, gourmet beef burger patties, ground beef patties, beef sliders, and other foods. The recall also includes a reminder that ground beef products should always be cooked to 160 degrees Fahrenheit, confirmed by a food thermometer. Rare burgers are never safe to consume.