Beef recalled under mad cow rules (but already distributed)

[flvegan]

U.S. cites 'minimal chance' for risk from Canadian animal

Tuesday, August 23, 2005; Posted: 7:39 a.m. EDT (11:39 GMT)

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Beef banned under mad cow disease rules was shipped to wholesalers in a half-dozen states and is now being recalled by a Wisconsin beef plant.

The 1,856 pounds of beef included meat from a Canadian cow that inspectors in Canada determined was eligible for shipment to the United States. A Canadian audit two weeks later found, however that the cow was too old to be allowed entry to the U.S.

<snip>

Green Bay Dressed Beef of Green Bay, Wisconsin, processed the cow on August 4 and distributed the meat to wholesalers in Pennsylvania, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota and Wisconsin. The department and the company are trying to find out how much beef wound up in retail stores, Cohen said.

The department issued code numbers for recalled cases of beef sent to distributors, but it was unknown whether beef that reached the retail level would have carried the same numbers.

full article, here: http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/08/22/mad.cow.ap/index.html

[Kagemusha]

1. Ugh.

Here I was yesterday saying it looked like the system worked. I guess not quite fast enough.

Everyone should be ok, but it's still an unacceptable foul-up.

[Systematic Chaos]

2. This is how this shit always happens....

Half the time the recalls are put out after most of the product is already consumed. I've heard about this more times than I can count. And more times than not, dairy doesn't fare any better. Usually recalled milk is already half sold by the time the stores know to pull it. :grr:

[flvegan]

3. And as is with ground beef

Oftentimes, it gets ground and reground over and over at the retail level. I'm also concerned over the leftover "parts" that are sent to rendering that become dog and cat food, gelatin, etc.

I don't eat meat, but I worry for those that do.

[ecoalex]

4. Organic Grass fed beef

It's healthy, and good for the land, farmers.

[tonekat]

5. I buy Highland Cow ground beef at the farmers market

I see more purveyors of natural meat products at the farmers markets now. Tastes better, and much safer.

[prairierose]

6. The USDA is a wholly owned subsiduary of...

corporate america. Nothing has been done to protect the public from mad cow disease or any other food borne illness.

When my family was farming, we worked very hard to produce clean safe foods but we knew that most of our neighbors believed whatever propaganda came out of USDA and the extension service.

I saw this when I was still farming & thus avoid as much commercially processed food as possible.

[oscar111]

7. Nationalize beef distribution

at least then we will have the same beef ID code numbers at all levels of distribution.

That is critical to locating errorneous distributions.

Otherwise, to find the bad beef,

"WATCH THE SIX OCLOCK NEWS MORGUE REPORT"

food poisoning flat kills thousands each year.

ps FDA site has an easily used search box for finding out about repreminds and fines against brand names. All three US tuna canners cited for really bad acts.
And, forget most foreign food. Probably European is ok, possibly Japanese and aussie and NZ, not sure.

As always, Scandanavian probably better than our systems.

[gulfcoastliberal]

8. The Japanese test every single cow.

But the Texas Cattle barons nor the USDA think it's worth doing even half, or a quarter, or a fracon of that.

[Lori Price CLG]

9. I'm so glad the Department of Agribusiness was all over that one...

...like a duck on a June bug. :eyes:

Lori Price