000634 Nebraska Company Recalls Beef

Lincoln, NE - A Nebraska company is voluntarily recalling more than three tons of ground beef products that may be tainted with E. coli, USDA said.

The products being recalled by Del Gould Meat, Inc. of Lincoln are Del Gould brand Ground Beef Patties, Beef Patty Mix and Ground Beef, packaged in 10 to 60 pound random weight boxes, the USDA's Food and Safety Inspection Service said Tuesday.

The ground beef products were produced on June 2, June 5 and June 6 and distributed to restaurants, bars and cafes in southeast Nebraska and southwest Iowa.

Officials said the products may have been tainted by the E. coli 0157:H7 strain. When ingested by humans, the E. coli bacterium can cause serious illness and sometimes death, especially in children and the elderly. Symptoms include dehydration and bloody diarrhea.

The USDA had received no reports of illness associated with the consumption of the beef.

Food Safety and Inspection Service Administrator Thomas J. Billy said the possible contamination was discovered through routine USDA monitoring.

Larry Feerhusen, president of Del Gould Meats, said in Wednesday's editions of the Lincoln Journal Star he suspected all but 200 pounds of the recalled beef had been consumed. He would not identify which restaurants received the meat or the three meatpackers that could have supplied it.

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