New York Senator Kristen Gillibrand (NY) has introduced the E. Coli Eradication Act of 2009; legislation that aims to improve the safety of ground beef.Several companies have had to recall ground beef over the course of the year due to contamination. Most recently, two Northeastern processing companies had to issue recalls after several people fell ill from E. coli after eating ground beef, and two children actually died—the families of the deceased are currently suing the companies.
The legislation introduced by Gillibrand “would require companies to test for a deadly E. coli strain [,]” according to Michael Moss’ story for the New York Times. The bill focuses on slaughterhouse trimmings and other meat sources used to make ground beef. The legislation would require both slaughterhouses and grinding facilities to have the ground beef sources tested before they are mixed to make ground beef.
While some companies like Costco do test their trimmings at their grinding facilities, the majority of the industry relies on slaughterhouses to do the testing. “Grinders that do their own spot check typically wait to test the finished product after the trim is mixed, which prevents identifying the source of the contamination.”
The New York Times previously reported that since 2007 there has been “a surge in E. coli outbreaks in ground beef [.]” Additionally, the Times found that some slaughterhouses would not sell to grinders who would test the trimmings from the slaughterhouses. According to the Times, consumer groups and some industry experts believe ground beef trimmings need “special attention because they are more susceptible to contamination [because the pathogen] thrives in cattle feces that can get smeared on the surfaces of whole cuts of meat.” Trimmings from these cuts are then used to make ground beef.
Senator Gillibrand, who sits on the Senate Agriculture Committee notes that the testing system in America has not been updated in 100 years, and therefore Gillibrand feels it is time to update testing methods to ensure American consumers are safe.
Naturally, the additional testing will cause the price of ground beef production to rise, the cost of which will likely be passed on to the consumer. However, a spokesman for the senator estimates the increase cost would amount to roughly a penny per pound for production. The US Department of Agriculture has banned the sale of beef tainted with the deadly E. coli strain O157:H7, but the department has not implemented any hard and fast rules for companies to follow. As such, the methods employed by companies are not universal as companies adopt the protocols they feel are necessary.
The department does test ground beef used for school lunches. “Since 2005, spot checks have found the E. coli pathogen in 36 lots of beef trimmings, which then were diverted from use in school lunches, the Agriculture Department said. Officials said that in each case they required the slaughterhouse to look for the cause of the contamination and propose solutions.”
For their part, an industry trade group, the American Meat Institute, believes the legislation is unnecessary and repetitive “because slaughterhouses voluntarily conduct their own spot checks.” Clearly Senator Gillibrand is not convinced by this argument.
To view Senator Gillibrand’s bill click here.
To read the New York Times story on the legislation click here.
To read the US Agriculture & Food Law and Policy post on the E. coli lawsuits click here.
Posted: 11/19/09
