Ground beef E. coli puts focus on meat oversight

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The first known U.S. outbreak linked to a rare strain of E. coli in ground beef is prompting a fresh look at tougher regulations to protect the nation's meat supply.

Three people in New York and Maine became ill this summer after eating ground beef traced to a Cargill plant in Wyalusing, Pa.

Cargill Meat Solutions, a subsidiary of Minneapolis-based Cargill Inc., recalled about 8,500 pounds of ground beef last Saturday and regulators warned consumers to throw out frozen meat bought at BJ's Wholesale Clubs in eight Eastern states. The ground beef had a use-by-or-freeze-by date of July 1.

Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, who was appointed undersecretary for food safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture nine days before the recall, has signaled interest in expanding federal oversight of meat beyond the most prevalent strain of E. coli.

"In order to best prevent illnesses and deaths from dangerous E. coli in beef, our policies need to evolve to address a broader range of these pathogens," Hagen said in a statement.

The New York Times first reported the USDA interest in federal oversight of other strains of E. coli following the Cargill recall.

The government requires meat plants to test for the most virulent strain of E. coli, O157:H7, which causes about 70,000 illnesses a year. They don't have to test for six other less common strains of E. coli, including O26, which sickened those involved the Cargill recall.

Industry officials said tests aren't widely available to detect the other strains of E. coli.

Cargill spokesman Mike Martin said Friday that the latest outbreak shows the need to keep searching for solutions to reduce the potential health risks. - AP