Valley Meats, LLC, an Illinois-based beef and pork company, has initiated a recall of approximately 6,768 pounds of raw ground beef produced on December 22, 2023, due to potential contamination with E. coli.
Valley Meats
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued an alert on January 1, expressing concern that the affected products might be present in institutional or restaurant refrigerators or freezers across states like Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan.
FSIS has urged restaurants and institutions not to serve the recalled ground beef products, advising that they be discarded or returned to the place of purchase. The recalled items, bearing establishment number “EST. 5712” inside the USDA mark of inspection, were distributed to distributor locations in the mentioned states for further distribution to restaurants and other institutional users.
E. coli O157:H7, the bacterium in question, can lead to severe health issues, including dehydration, bloody diarrhea, and abdominal cramps. While most individuals recover within a week, some may develop hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure.
This condition is more common in children under 5 years old and older adults, and those experiencing symptoms like easy bruising, pallor, and decreased urine output should seek emergency medical care promptly, according to FSIS.
