State inspectors find recalled meat at New Jersey store
By JEFFREY GOLD | AP Business Writer
4:38 PM EDT, October 25, 2007
NEWARK, N.J. - New Jersey consumer safety officials on Thursday said its inspectors were able to buy boxes of potentially tainted frozen hamburgers at a store weeks after the meat was recalled, sparking fear that a distributor may have delivered boxes to other stores.
"The public's health is clearly endangered by having these recalled products available for purchase and consumption," Attorney General Anne Milgram said. "We want to know what other stores may have purchased these products from the distributor and immediately inspect those stores."
To learn that information, the state subpoenaed the company that delivered the beef to the store, Greater New York Frozen Food Distribution Co. Inc., of New York.
A message seeking comment Thursday from the distributor was not immediately returned.
The 19 boxes were purchased in Union City on Wednesday, nearly four weeks after the New Jersey manufacturer, Topps Meat Co., issued a nationwide recall on Sept. 29 for 21.7 million pounds of frozen patties.
Officials would not reveal the name of the store because of the pending investigation, said Jeff Lamm, a spokesman for the state Division of Consumer Affairs.
Investigators have not determined when the store received the shipment of frozen patties, Lamm said.
Selling or distributing a recalled product could be a violation of the state's Consumer Fraud Act.
State inspectors are also continuing to visit stores and search for recalled Topps products, which are sold under the Topps brand as well as Pathmark, ShopRite, Mike's, Kohler Foods, Rastelli's Fine Foods, Roma-Topps, Sam's Choice, Sand Castle, and West Side labels. All recalled products will have a USDA establishment number of EST 9748 on the back panel of the package or in the USDA logo.
Topps, based in Elizabeth, closed its business six days after the nationwide recall. It blamed its collapse on the scope of the recall _ a year's worth of production _ even though much of the meat had already been eaten.
The size of the recall _ the second-largest U.S. beef recall _ also prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture to announce changes in how it will inspect meat plants. After being criticized for foot-dragging, the USDA said it would move faster to encourage recalls. The agency cannot issue recalls.
Meanwhile, 40 people in eight states were sickened since July with E. coli infections linked to the Topps burgers.
A USDA investigation into the sources of the contaminated meat packaged by Topps was continuing.
Topps burgers contained at least three versions of the O157:H7 strain of E. coli bacteria, which can be fatal to humans. The strain is harbored in the intestines of cattle and can also get on their hides. Improper butchering and processing can cause the E. coli to get onto meat. Thorough cooking, to at least 160 degrees internal temperature, can destroy the bacteria.