The state Department of Public Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are continuing testing meat samples that resulted in a recall of beef products processed by Adams Farm, in an attempt to determine the source of E. coli contamination found in samples.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Monday that Adams Farm recalled 2,574 pounds of beef products after one person became ill from eating beef processed by the slaughterhouse. Meat from farms in Warren, Petersham and Ashfield was recalled, and testing and an investigation are being conducted to locate the source of the E. coli.
Jennifer L. Manley, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Public Health, said that on Jan. 7, 13 meat samples from a family that received a quarter cow share from a farm in Warren were tested. She said ground beef samples and a representative selection of the intact cuts tested positive for E. coli. DNA analysis needed to determine where the animal came from will not be completed until either tomorrow or Monday.
Ms. Manley said the following day, two meat samples were collected from the Adams Farm slaughterhouse during the joint inspection conducted with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Both samples tested negative for E. coli.
“The exact source of contamination has not been identified,” Ms. Manley said.
The farms are under the jurisdiction of the state Department of Agriculture, which is conducting a follow-up investigation.
Ms. Manley said Adams Farm is under USDA supervision and federal inspectors found the slaughterhouse to be substantially in compliance with federal and state regulations.
A joint inspection was conducted on Friday by the state Food Protection Program and the USDA to verify safe food handling processes at the slaughterhouse. Ms. Manley said samples were collected of product from a different lot, to verify that contamination is not persisting in the environment.
Following the recall, the slaughterhouse continues to conduct normal business. Ms. Manley said that during the inspection, no violations were observed that would require any special requirements to be put into place.
“The facility was operating in accordance with applicable state regulations,” she said.
The Adams Farm slaughterhouse is a relatively new facility and Ms. Manley said it has had no problems since it was built in 2008, after a fire in 2006 destroyed the farm’s old building. Ms. Manley said the new building was in compliance with state regulations when it was inspected by the state Food Protection Program on Oct. 28, 2008, after it opened, and a follow-up inspection in September also found no violations.
Ms. Manley said water for Adams Farm is provided by a private well and when it was tested, no E. coli bacteria were found. The farm is operating on a one-year license that expires July 26.
The farms also involved in the meat recall are not licensed by the state Food Protection Program and local boards of health do not inspect farmland for E. coli because under state law, spreading manure on agricultural and horticultural lands may not be deemed a nuisance.
“The USDA encourages, but does not require, farms to follow good agricultural practices,” Ms. Manley said.
A spokeswoman from the U.S. Department of Agriculture said the investigation into the recalled beef is ongoing and a safety assessment will be conducted to determine what caused the contamination.
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Source: newsroom - meattradenewsdaily.co.uk
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