Maine Red Meat Recall
Some days I’m really glad the doctors told me not to eat red meat.
The Maine Department of Agriculture says a Greene company is voluntarily recalling nearly a ton of beef. Bubier Farms says nearly 2,000 pounds of beef may be contaminated with fecal matter, a common source of E-Coli bacteria.
State officials say 1,936 pounds of beef may be contaminated with fecal material, as well as other contaminants. The problem was discovered by a federal inspector earlier this week. Officials say the inspector found fecal matter and hair on slabs of beef inside a cooler at Bubier Meats.
Bubier meats is a small family run business that only sells product here in Maine. State officials say at this point they do not know if any of the meat in the recall is actually contaminated. But it is being recalled because it was in the cooler on the same day the inspection was done.
“The big concern with fecal contamination would be e-coli. We haven’t confirmed, we haven’t tested any yet, we’re just recalling because with fecal contamination we can’t take any chances whatsoever,” said Hal Prince from the Maine Department of Agriculture.
Most of the meat went to small grocery stores and restaurants around southern Maine. State officials say about 75% of the recalled meat has already been returned.
Here is a list of what has been recalled:
–Two whole sides of beef stamped Est. 4.
–10-lb. bags of beef labeled Bubier Meats Hamburg.
–10-lb. bags of ground beef labeled Caldwell Farms Beef All Natural Beef. The product code on the ground beef is 647.
–Primal cuts of beef also labeled Caldwell Farms Beef All Natural Beef.
Consumers with questions about the recall can call Bubier Farms Manager Tobie Bubier at 207-946-7761. Tobie Bubier says he’s confident that no meat that left his plant was contaminated and says he plans to have an independent laboratory test it to prove his case.
Source: Maine Farm Recalls Beef That May Be Tainted
Keep in mind that a small percentage of red meat is actually inspected. How scary is that? How much scary does that make the fact that they just happened to inspect on the same day this happened?
Tags: beef, red meat, food contamination e. coli, Bubier Farms, Maine Department of Agriculture, Maine
