March 2008
Authorities investigate big rise in beef contamination
TARDY Most recalls occur after beef reaches consumers.
After four years of decline in recalls of ground beef contaminated by the potentially deadly E. coli bacteria, the toxin has
returned with a vengeance. More than 25 million pounds of beef believed to be tainted went to market in 2007, up from less
than 200,000 pounds the year before.
Government regulators and beef industry officials have been scrambling to explain the increase in beef contamination. Among the theories: rising oil prices have encouraged greater production of ethanol, which creates a corn byproduct that increasingly is being used as cattle feed. This feed appears to make the animals' digestive tracts even more hospitable breeding grounds for the toxic strain of E. coli bacteria, says Kenneth Petersen, an assistant administrator in the Office of Field Operations at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Droughts in some regions might also have contributed to the survival of more virulent forms of the bacteria, and better investigation methods now can link far-flung cases of beef contamination to a single cause.
But the main obstacles to preventing the spread of toxic E. coli are inadequate government inspection and meat-handling practices, particularly in slaughterhouses, where contamination is most likely to occur.
"Slaughter plants are the primary source of E. coli contamination, so the USDA should be putting more resources toward recording and tracing back the original source of contaminated meat detected in test samplings at smaller down-line processing facilities," says John Munsell, former owner of a Montana-based meat packing and slaughter company who has testified about beef contamination at congressional hearings.
Other shortfalls in the safety system, experts say, include these:
Government regulators and beef industry officials have been scrambling to explain the increase in beef contamination. Among the theories: rising oil prices have encouraged greater production of ethanol, which creates a corn byproduct that increasingly is being used as cattle feed. This feed appears to make the animals' digestive tracts even more hospitable breeding grounds for the toxic strain of E. coli bacteria, says Kenneth Petersen, an assistant administrator in the Office of Field Operations at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Droughts in some regions might also have contributed to the survival of more virulent forms of the bacteria, and better investigation methods now can link far-flung cases of beef contamination to a single cause.
But the main obstacles to preventing the spread of toxic E. coli are inadequate government inspection and meat-handling practices, particularly in slaughterhouses, where contamination is most likely to occur.
"Slaughter plants are the primary source of E. coli contamination, so the USDA should be putting more resources toward recording and tracing back the original source of contaminated meat detected in test samplings at smaller down-line processing facilities," says John Munsell, former owner of a Montana-based meat packing and slaughter company who has testified about beef contamination at congressional hearings.
Other shortfalls in the safety system, experts say, include these:
- Carcasses can move through slaughterhouses at a rate of up to 390 per hour, making inspection difficult.
- If meat tests positive for the bacteria, companies are allowed to cook it for sale in other products such as pizza or tacos.
While thorough cooking should kill E. coli, diverting tainted meat creates an opening for cross-contamination.
- Consumer illnesses, not government or industry testing, triggered recalls for the majority of the 61.8 million pounds of beef
subject to E. coli-related recalls over the past five years, according to the U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service.
