FDA finally names culprit


Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
produced by Cargill linked to a California death and other illnesses
nationwide.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the move late Wednesday.
All of the recalled products were reportedly produced at the company's
Springdale, Ark., plant.

The recall follows the death of a Sacramento, Calif., resident tied to
an outbreak of salmonella food poisoning that has sickened at least 76
other people in 26 states. At the family's request, no details about
the death have been released.

Cargill officials did not return requests for comment from msnbc.com,
but a company spokesman told the New York Times on Tuesday that the
company had been asked to provide documentation and was cooperating
with federal officials.

California, which confirmed six cases of salmonella, is among several
states with multiple cases of infection blamed on ground turkey. At
least 10 people have been reported to be sickened in Ohio and Michigan
and nine fell ill in Texas. At least 22 people have been hospitalized
after becoming ill with the foodborne bacteria resistant to many
commonly used antibiotics.

Despite growing consumer concern about the outbreak, which was first
announced late last week, government health officials said Tuesday
they still don't have enough information to issue a recall or identify
brands or companies responsible for the dozens of infections
nationwide.

The federal Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a public health
alert about the possibility of salmonella Heidelberg infections linked
to ground turkey, but a spokesman said that's as far as they can go.

"FSIS has not linked these illnesses to a particular brand, product or
establishment, and therefore has not issued a recall," said the
spokesman, who was not authorized to be named. "We are continuing to
investigate the situation."

CDC officials said cultures of four ground turkey samples purchased
from four retail locations between March 7 and June 27 detected the
outbreak strain of salmonella Heidelberg. Early information indicates
that three of the samples came from a common production establishment.
CDC officials would not identify that establishment, saying those
cultures had not been linked to actual illnesses.

The samples of salmonella Heidelberg appear to be resistant to
commonly used antibiotics, which could thwart or complicate treatment.
Of 58 people who provided information about their illnesses, 22 had
been hospitalized in the outbreak as of Aug. 1. Illnesses that
occurred after July 5 may not yet be included in the overall count
because of reporting lag time, CDC said.

Health officials are not recommending that consumers avoid fresh or
frozen ground turkey, despite the dozens of illnesses and the
California death, which come at the height of grilling season, the
FSIS spokesman said.

Instead, he urged consumers to follow basic food safety practices,
including washing hands and surfaces well and cooking ground turkey to
an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, using a meat
thermometer to ensure it's fully cooked.

States in which illnesses have been reported, and the number of
illnesses, follow he Alabama, 1 case; Arizona, 2 cases; California,
6 cases; Georgia, 1 case; Iowa, 1 case; Illinois, seven cases;
Indiana, 1 case; Kentucky, 2 cases; Louisiana, 1 case; Massachusetts,
1 case; Michigan, 10 cases; Minnesota, 1 case; Missouri, two cases;
Mississippi, 1 case; North Carolina, 1 case; Nebraska, two cases;
Nevada, 1 case; New York, two cases; Ohio, 10 cases; Oklahoma, 1 case;
Oregon, 1 case; Pennsylvania, five cases; South Dakota, three cases,
Tennessee, two cases; Texas, nine cases; Wisconsin, three cases.

Janet US

Ranee at Arabian Knits wrote:
> In article >,
> Janet Bostwick > wrote:
>
>> Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
>> produced by Cargill linked to a California death and other illnesses
>> nationwide.
>
> And yet tomorrow and the week after people will just go back to the
> grocery store and buy more of their products. Most of them not because
> they have to either. Why should the company change its policies when it
> knows it's just a gamble they can cover.
>


All that meat going to waste, plus the disposal costs! And it's
probably fine, so long as one is not stupid enough to eat it rare or
let it drip on the salad.

(What an uproar it would cause if they disposed of it by distributing
to schools and prisons with instructions to cook it well done)

Hopefully it at least gets turned into dogfood and not dumped in the
landfill.

-Bob

"Janet Bostwick" > wrote in message
...
> FDA finally names culprit
>
>
> Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
> produced by Cargill linked to a California death and other illnesses
> nationwide.
>
> The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the move late Wednesday.
> All of the recalled products were reportedly produced at the company's
> Springdale, Ark., plant.
>
> The recall follows the death of a Sacramento, Calif., resident tied to
> an outbreak of salmonella food poisoning that has sickened at least 76
> other people in 26 states. At the family's request, no details about
> the death have been released.
>
> Cargill officials did not return requests for comment from msnbc.com,
> but a company spokesman told the New York Times on Tuesday that the
> company had been asked to provide documentation and was cooperating
> with federal officials.
>
> California, which confirmed six cases of salmonella, is among several
> states with multiple cases of infection blamed on ground turkey. At
> least 10 people have been reported to be sickened in Ohio and Michigan
> and nine fell ill in Texas. At least 22 people have been hospitalized
> after becoming ill with the foodborne bacteria resistant to many
> commonly used antibiotics.
>
> Despite growing consumer concern about the outbreak, which was first
> announced late last week, government health officials said Tuesday
> they still don't have enough information to issue a recall or identify
> brands or companies responsible for the dozens of infections
> nationwide.
>
> The federal Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a public health
> alert about the possibility of salmonella Heidelberg infections linked
> to ground turkey, but a spokesman said that's as far as they can go.
>
> "FSIS has not linked these illnesses to a particular brand, product or
> establishment, and therefore has not issued a recall," said the
> spokesman, who was not authorized to be named. "We are continuing to
> investigate the situation."
>
> CDC officials said cultures of four ground turkey samples purchased
> from four retail locations between March 7 and June 27 detected the
> outbreak strain of salmonella Heidelberg. Early information indicates
> that three of the samples came from a common production establishment.
> CDC officials would not identify that establishment, saying those
> cultures had not been linked to actual illnesses.
>
> The samples of salmonella Heidelberg appear to be resistant to
> commonly used antibiotics, which could thwart or complicate treatment.
> Of 58 people who provided information about their illnesses, 22 had
> been hospitalized in the outbreak as of Aug. 1. Illnesses that
> occurred after July 5 may not yet be included in the overall count
> because of reporting lag time, CDC said.
>
> Health officials are not recommending that consumers avoid fresh or
> frozen ground turkey, despite the dozens of illnesses and the
> California death, which come at the height of grilling season, the
> FSIS spokesman said.
>
> Instead, he urged consumers to follow basic food safety practices,
> including washing hands and surfaces well and cooking ground turkey to
> an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, using a meat
> thermometer to ensure it's fully cooked.
>
> States in which illnesses have been reported, and the number of
> illnesses, follow he Alabama, 1 case; Arizona, 2 cases; California,
> 6 cases; Georgia, 1 case; Iowa, 1 case; Illinois, seven cases;
> Indiana, 1 case; Kentucky, 2 cases; Louisiana, 1 case; Massachusetts,
> 1 case; Michigan, 10 cases; Minnesota, 1 case; Missouri, two cases;
> Mississippi, 1 case; North Carolina, 1 case; Nebraska, two cases;
> Nevada, 1 case; New York, two cases; Ohio, 10 cases; Oklahoma, 1 case;
> Oregon, 1 case; Pennsylvania, five cases; South Dakota, three cases,
> Tennessee, two cases; Texas, nine cases; Wisconsin, three cases.
>
> Janet US

Uh oh. I have some ground turkey burgers in my freezer. I gave daughter
the option of that or chicken. She chose chicken. I had better go see who
makes mine.

"Sqwertz" > wrote in message
...
> On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:48:31 -0600, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>
>> Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
>
> I don't even think I've SEEN ground turkey for a couple years. But
> I'm sure it's there - just a mental block for me.
>
> I buy one turkey a year, and that's plenty enough for me and my crowd.
> A Baby Food Recall would interest me slightly more :-)

It's there. I try not to look at it because it is nasty stuff but my
daughter wanted to try it. She doesn't like ground beef.

Julie wrote:

> Uh oh. I have some ground turkey burgers in my freezer. I gave daughter
> the option of that or chicken. She chose chicken. I had better go see who
> makes mine.

Cook it thoroughly and there won't be a problem.

Bob

"Bob Terwilliger" > wrote in message
b.com...
> Julie wrote:
>
>> Uh oh. I have some ground turkey burgers in my freezer. I gave daughter
>> the option of that or chicken. She chose chicken. I had better go see who
>> makes mine.
>
> Cook it thoroughly and there won't be a problem.

I checked. These are Jennie-O. I don't think those are part of this
recall.

Ranee at Arabian Knits wrote:
>
> In article >,
> Janet Bostwick > wrote:
>
> > Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
> > produced by Cargill linked to a California death and other illnesses
> > nationwide.
>
> And yet tomorrow and the week after people will just go back to the
> grocery store and buy more of their products. Most of them not because
> they have to either. Why should the company change its policies when it
> knows it's just a gamble they can cover.

Exactly what percentage of their product do you thing has contamination
problems? Would you blacklist your local independent butcher if they had
a problem with a single cow being contaminated out of a few years worth
of butchering? 36 million pounds sure sounds big, but it's a drop in the
bucket of Cargil's production. I'm not willing to bash any company that
has a defective product percentage several places to the right of the
decimal point.

On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 23:03:34 -0500, "Pete C." >
wrote:

>
>Ranee at Arabian Knits wrote:
>>
>> In article >,
>> Janet Bostwick > wrote:
>>
>> > Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
>> > produced by Cargill linked to a California death and other illnesses
>> > nationwide.
>>
>> And yet tomorrow and the week after people will just go back to the
>> grocery store and buy more of their products. Most of them not because
>> they have to either. Why should the company change its policies when it
>> knows it's just a gamble they can cover.
>
>Exactly what percentage of their product do you thing has contamination
>problems? Would you blacklist your local independent butcher if they had
>a problem with a single cow being contaminated out of a few years worth
>of butchering? 36 million pounds sure sounds big, but it's a drop in the
>bucket of Cargil's production. I'm not willing to bash any company that
>has a defective product percentage several places to the right of the
>decimal point.

I don't bash the company at all... it's the morons who buy mystery
ground poultry products of all types who are 100% to blame... if the
morons didn't buy shit there'd be no company that sells shit.

On 8/3/2011 9:33 PM, Julie Bove wrote:
> "Bob > wrote in message
> b.com...
>> Julie wrote:
>>
>>> Uh oh. I have some ground turkey burgers in my freezer. I gave daughter
>>> the option of that or chicken. She chose chicken. I had better go see who
>>> makes mine.
>>
>> Cook it thoroughly and there won't be a problem.
>
> I checked. These are Jennie-O. I don't think those are part of this
> recall.

Nope. Different company. Most of the Cargill products are the
Honeysuckle label, but there's a few store brands in the list, too.
Here's the list:

http://stage1.order.cargill.com/na3047772.pdf

On Wed, 3 Aug 2011 18:03:25 -0500, Sqwertz wrote:

> On Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:48:31 -0600, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>
>> Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
>
> I don't even think I've SEEN ground turkey for a couple years. But
> I'm sure it's there - just a mental block for me.
>
> I buy one turkey a year, and that's plenty enough for me and my crowd.
> A Baby Food Recall would interest me slightly more :-)
>
> -sw

uncharitable to say so, but if you eat ground turkey...

your pal,
blake

"Janet Bostwick" > wrote in message
...
> FDA finally names culprit
>
>
> Federal officials are recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey
> produced by Cargill linked to a California death and other illnesses
> nationwide.
>
> The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the move late Wednesday.
> All of the recalled products were reportedly produced at the company's
> Springdale, Ark., plant.
>
> The recall follows the death of a Sacramento, Calif., resident tied to
> an outbreak of salmonella food poisoning that has sickened at least 76
> other people in 26 states. At the family's request, no details about
> the death have been released.
>
(snippage)

I'm very sorry for the families. But I don't understand ground turkey.
It's not lower in fat than ground beef. Most people think it's better for
them. Fact is, they grind in the skin so it might be even more fatty than
if you just had a good old beef burger.

Jill

On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
snip
>
>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio, iirc.
snip
>
>Andy
The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
closely at your packages?
Janet US

On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 17:34:57 -0500, Andy > wrote:

>Janet Bostwick > wrote:
>
>> On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
>> snip
>>>
>>>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>>>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio,
>>>iirc.
>> snip
>>>
>>>Andy
>> The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
>> closely at your packages?
>
>
>Janet US,
>
>I haven't looked at ground turkey in probably five years.
>
>I transitioned to free-range buffalo soon after.
>
>Then the buffalo supply dried up soon after that.
>
>Best,
>
>Andy

I would love to have access to buffalo. 30 years ago it was easy to
find. Now it is test marketed and then disappears. I saw the ratio
on a package of turkey by accident, the numbers caught me by surprise
because I didn't realize turkey was labeled.
Janet US

On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 16:19:45 -0600, Janet Bostwick
> wrote:

>On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
>snip
>>
>>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio, iirc.
>snip
>>
>>Andy
>The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
>closely at your packages?
>Janet US

Most ground turkey packed at the plant is frozen and marked as
calories from fat, not ratio. When turkey is ground at a local
butcher shop (and not many do) they truly have no way to accurately
determine fat ratios, they add as much fat as they think they can get
away with is all. This contaminated ground meat problem would be
reduced drastically if only folks would grind their own. I honestly
don't understand how anyone can eat ground turkey, it tastes
disgusting, but if it's important to you to eat ground turkey for
whatever reason grind your own... it's not difficult... and a grinder
is a whole lot less expensive than a stay at a hospital, or a funeral
parlor.

On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 18:56:42 -0400, Brooklyn1 <Gravesend1> wrote:

>On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 16:19:45 -0600, Janet Bostwick
> wrote:
>
>>On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
>>snip
>>>
>>>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>>>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio, iirc.
>>snip
>>>
>>>Andy
>>The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
>>closely at your packages?
>>Janet US
>
>Most ground turkey packed at the plant is frozen and marked as
>calories from fat, not ratio. When turkey is ground at a local
>butcher shop (and not many do) they truly have no way to accurately
>determine fat ratios, they add as much fat as they think they can get
>away with is all. This contaminated ground meat problem would be
>reduced drastically if only folks would grind their own. I honestly
>don't understand how anyone can eat ground turkey, it tastes
>disgusting, but if it's important to you to eat ground turkey for
>whatever reason grind your own... it's not difficult... and a grinder
>is a whole lot less expensive than a stay at a hospital, or a funeral
>parlor.
The package that I saw was a plant sealed and prepared package. The
calories, protein, etc were labeled elsewhere on the package. The
percentage fat was clearly displayed in the upper right quadrant of
the package.
Janet US

"Janet Bostwick" > wrote in message
...
> On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
> snip
>>
>>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio, iirc.
> snip
>>
>>Andy
> The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
> closely at your packages?
> Janet US


Why bother? Ground turkey is boring. I don't even like whole roasted
turkey (I roast cornish hens for Thanksgiving).

Jill

i love turkey in about any for that is available in, the dh doesn't care
for some of the ground that is pre seasoned, but we haven't had any for
awhile, guess thats a good thing, Lee
"jmcquown" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Janet Bostwick" > wrote in message
> ...
>> On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
>> snip
>>>
>>>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>>>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio, iirc.
>> snip
>>>
>>>Andy
>> The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
>> closely at your packages?
>> Janet US
>
>
> Why bother? Ground turkey is boring. I don't even like whole roasted
> turkey (I roast cornish hens for Thanksgiving).
>
> Jill

On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 16:19:45 -0600, Janet Bostwick wrote:

> On Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:57:45 -0500, Andy > wrote:
> snip
>>
>>I thought, as you mention, that ground turkey was leaner than ground
>>beef, back in my diet days. They don't label the lean to fat ratio, iirc.
> snip
>>
>>Andy
> The packages around here are labeled for ratio. Have you looked
> closely at your packages?
> Janet US

i'm not going to look closely at andy's package no matter what you say.

your pal,
blake