E. coli O157:H7 Intervention for Use at Retail Level
It has been 10 years since hundreds of people were sickened by and four people died from eating hamburgers contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Four years later, a recall was issued on 25 million pounds of ground beef that was also linked to consumer foodborne illness associated with E. coli O157:H7, which eventually led to one well-established U.S. company going out of business. These unfortunate events have had a huge impact on the meat industry and how it does business. Since then, there have been many changes made to the way things are done and how meat is produced and handled at all levels of the food supply chain, from the farm through the processor to the local grocery store.
As E. coli O157:H7 emerged as a significant foodborne illness-causing pathogen, the government stepped up efforts to measure the incidence of this microorganism in raw ground beef and trimmings. In 1994, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) instituted both production and retail level testing programs for E. coli O157:H7. Each year, USDA personnel collect approximately 7,000 samples in both production facilities and retail facilities and test them for E. coli O157:H7. In 2002, the USDA tested 1,241 samples at the retail level, 13 (0.2%) of which were positive for E. coli O157:H7, and 5,785 samples were collected at beef grinding plants, 42 (0.6%) of which were found to be positive for E. coli O157:H7. All beef from positive lots was removed from commerce.