Autumn Raulerson
ECB Publishing, Inc.
In August, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection Service (USDA; FSIS) announced a Class I risk recall on nearly 30,000 pounds of raw beef that had been distributed to retailers in Florida and Texas. The announcement was made for the Florida-based importer Corte Argentino LLC, and it was the result of routine FSIS inspection activities that discovered that this imported beef had come from Argentina without undergoing the process of import re-inspection. The products have use-by dates between Sept. 15 and Sept. 20, leading the FSIS to be concerned that some consumers may still have this product in their fridge.
The USDA announced the recall as a Class I, the most serious recall level for tainted food products. Under the FSIS’s own definition, a Class I risk classification means that “this is a health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.”
This classification is determined by an Event Assessment Committee, convened by the FSIS, who conducts a health hazard evaluation to evaluate the health risk of any recalled products that have already made it into commerce. The system reduces in severity as numbers rise, meaning Class II qualifies as a medium risk (the product holds the remote probability of adverse health effects); while Class III is a negligible risk (the product is virtually guaranteed not to cause harm).
The FSIS regularly announces recalls on food products to their website where, in some cases, you can find the list of retailers who received tainted products. These recalls are technically voluntary, however if a facility refuses a request, the FSIS can immediately seize the product and suspend all plant operations, effectively forcing compliance.
The affected products for the recall are boneless beef cuts sold under the “FrigorIfico Gorina SAIC” brand, including top sirloin butt, eye round, topside cap off, flat and knuckle cuts of beef. There have so far been no confirmed reports of injury or illness due to the consumption of these products, however the hazard designation of Class I predicates that illness or death from these products is a distinct possibility.
Anyone concerned about illness or injury from these recalled products should contact a healthcare provider. Also, anyone who thinks they may have bought these cuts of meat in the last month or two should check their freezers to make sure there isn’t anything dangerous lurking in the icebox. It’s unlikely, since the list of retailers shows distributed locations were mainly in the Tampa area, but diligence is still recommended!
IN THE FEATURED PHOTO: The nearly 30,000 pounds of recalled beef products were distributed to countless stores across Texas and Florida. While it is not confirmed that the recall is due to contamination, it is more accurate to say the state of the product’s safety is unknown, due to failure to follow federal clearance procedures through import re-inspection. Photo Courtesy