Beef recalled after E. coli outbreak

By LISA CRUTCHFIELD
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
Published: August 8, 2008

A California company has recalled about 153,630 pounds of frozen ground beef linked to E. coli O157 infections at Goshen Scout Reservation in Rockbridge County, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.

The ground beef, recalled by S&S Foods of Azusa, Calif., was intended for food service and institutional use and not for direct retail purchase, said Laura Reiser, spokeswoman for the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.

Whether affected meat was distributed to other locations in the state is unknown. Calls to S&S Foods were not immediately returned.

About 84 people who attended the camp at the reservation between July 20 and Aug. 2 have shown symptoms of the E. coli infection.

Twenty-five children in Northern Virginia have been lab-confirmed with the E.coli O157 infection and eight Virginia Scouts have required hospitalization, said Virginia health officials.

In addition, five cases of E. coli O157 have been confirmed among those who returned from Goshen to Maryland, said Karen Black, spokeswoman for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Symptoms usually begin one to 10 days after exposure, said epidemiologist Seth Levine.

Health officials matched samples of beef removed from the Scout reservation to bacteria found in stool samples of some of the affected campers.

“We know it is related to some, but we don’t know yet if it is related to all,” said Virginia Department of Health spokeswoman Michelle Peregoy. It may be several weeks before testing can confirm that the recalled beef was the only source of infection, she said.

It is possible that some of those affected may have gotten the bacteria from secondary sources, such as latrines, said health officials.

The most common source of the E. coli O157 bacterium is undercooked, contaminated ground beef, but other foods, swimming in feces-contaminated water and handling animals can cause illness.

Symptoms of infection include diarrhea and stomach cramps and may include vomiting, fever or chills. Long-term effects may include kidney damage.

From Jan. 1 to July 21, 5.58 million pounds of ground beef were recalled in the U.S for E. coli bacteria, said the USDA’s Reiser. The department monitors all recalled beef to ensure its destruction, she said.

The Virginia Department of Health was notified of the initial E. coli outbreak at the scout reservation on July 27. When the numbers continued to rise last weekend, Scout officials closed the Virginia Goshen camps for the rest of the season. Health department officials were on site again this week to take environmental samples and interview staff, said Levine.

Nearly 1,500 Scouts and adult leaders and 200 staff members were at the camp from July 20-26, and 1,310 Scouts and leaders attended last week, the National Capital Area Council said. Goshen Scout Reservation is situated on about 4,000 acres on the shores of Lake Merriweather.
Contact Lisa Crutchfield at (804) 649-6362 or .