ShopRite Burgers and Ground Beef Brands Recalled Over E. Coli

A public health alert was issued by federal officials this week, warning the public over ShopRite brand frozen hamburger meat that could be potentially contaminated with the E. coli virus. (USDA)

Federal agriculture officials sent out a public health alert over ShopRite brand frozen hamburger meat and ground beef that was potentially contaminated with E. coli.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service posted an alert on Oct. 16 that the Ryding-Regency Meat Packers facility in Ontario, Canada, shipped ground meat in question to 10 states in the United States.

The USDA also noted that consumers might be unaware that their freezers might contain the E. coli-contaminated meat.

The recalled products are as follows:

• 10-pound cardboard box packages containing bulk plastic-wrapped raw frozen ground beef gyros labeled “DEVANCO FOODS CHICAGO’S FAVORITE” GYROS SLICES (STRIPS) with a case code 159 19.
• 10-pound cardboard box packages containing bulk plastic-wrapped raw frozen ground beef gyros labeled “KRONOS HALAL GYROS STRIPS” HALAL CERTIFIED BEEF GYROS UNCOOKED, IQF STRIPS with a case code 19 159.
• Retail sized (8 patties) cardboard box packages containing “ZIYAD PREMIUM QUALITY Beef Hamburger Patties” with a case code 911541.021541.
• Retail sized (8 kabobs) cardboard box packages containing “ZIYAD PREMIUM QUALITY Uncooked Kufta Kabob” with a case code 911154.021154.
• 8-pound cardboard box packages containing bulk plastic-wrapped raw frozen ground beef patties labeled “Shop Rite 100% PURE QUARTER POUND Ground Beef Hamburgers” and a sell-by date of 060720.
• 3-pound cardboard box packages containing plastic wrapped raw frozen ground beef patties labeled “Shop Rite 100% PURE Ground Beef Hamburgers” and a sell by date of 060720.
• 2-pound cardboard box packages containing plastic wrapped raw frozen ground beef patties labeled “LANDIS BRAND 100% ALL BEEF PATTIES 8 Quarter Pound Patties” and a sell-by date of 060720.

The USDA was notified by Canada’s Food Inspection Agency that the beef was produced on May 27 and May 30 of this year.

“The U.S. companies that produced these raw non-intact beef products have received notice of the recall from Ryding-Regency and FSIS has confirmed that they are following the instructions provided to recall affected product from their customers. However, retail consumers may not have received such notification,” according to the agency.

E. coli under a microscope (CDC)

The ShopRite recall website was updated to include the ground beef recall as of Saturday.

“E. coli is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and in the most severe cases, kidney failure. The very young, seniors and persons with weak immune systems are the most susceptible to foodborne illness,” said the agency.

“FSIS advises all consumers to safely prepare their raw meat products, including fresh and frozen, and only consume ground beef that has been cooked to a temperature of 160° F. The only way to confirm that ground beef is cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer that measures internal temperature,” the health agency stated.