001225 More E. Coli Cases Reported

Minneapolis - The number of people sickened by an E. coli outbreak involving ground beef bought at Cub Foods has risen to 30, with cases confirmed in three states.

Three of those sickened, including a 16-year-old girl, remained hospitalized Wednesday, said Buddy Ferguson, spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Health.

Four new cases of the food-borne illness were confirmed in the state Wednesday, adding to the 22 confirmed earlier. One person in Iowa and three in Wisconsin also have been sickened.

Cub Foods' supplier, American Foods Group Inc., has voluntarily recalled 1.1 million pounds of ground beef prepared at its Green Bay, Wis., plant in early November. American Foods said it has found no evidence the E. coli bacteria entered the ground beef on its premises. Other distributors who honored the recall include Aldi Inc., Kroger Co. and Sysco Corp.

States affected by the current American Foods recall include Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

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