E. coli concerns prompt recall of 59,000 pounds of ground beef sold in seven states

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) _ Packerland Packing Co. has recalled 59,000 pounds of ground beef sold in seven states that may be contaminated with E. coli bacteria. <br/><br/>The beef in Friday's recall was

Monday, September 20th 2004, 10:09 am

By: News On 6

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) _ Packerland Packing Co. has recalled 59,000 pounds of ground beef sold in seven states that may be contaminated with E. coli bacteria.

The beef in Friday's recall was produced Sept. 2 at Packerland's Green Bay facility, and was distributed to stores in Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Stores were asked to remove the product.

Steve Van Lannen, general manager for the Green Bay-based company, said in a statement the company was working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

``Given our long history of focusing on product safety and our standards of excellence, we will err on the side of being overly cautious with this recall,'' he said.

Packerland recalled the meat after its internal testing showed the ground beef was possibly contaminated and mistakenly shipped.

The ground beef was sold under: Imperial Beef, Fine Ground, 81/19 G18148FR; PPC's Ground Beef, Fine Ground Sirloin, 95/5 G49548RO; and PPC's Ground Beef, Coarse Ground Sirloin, 95/5 G49540PP.

Consumers concerned about the ground beef should take it back to the place of purchase to determine if it is part of the recall. Packerland Packing's 24-hour hotline is (800) 325-4164.

Ground beef cooked to at least 160 degrees will kill bacteria.