Hannaford Ignored Meat-Handling Guidelines
Hannaford Supermarkets, which has been linked to the ground beef Salmonella outbreak that has sickened 19 people in seven states, ignored longstanding federal recommendations on minimizing food safety hazards in raw ground meat.
First published in 1998 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) , Guidance for Beef Grinders and Suppliers of Boneless Beef and Trim Products states that grinders should “prevent any mixing of product from different suppliers” and should maintain records detailed enough “to identify, trace, and retrieve from commerce any ground beef products that may pose a threat to public health.”
After opening an investigation to pinpoint the original source of the outbreak linked to meat produced at Hannaford Supermarkets, the USDA found that the company’s inadequate records and practice of packaging ground meat from multiple suppliers mired traceback efforts.
This situation is precisely what the agency has hoped to avoid by publishing and republishing beef grinding guidelines over the last 15 years. Although following USDA guidelines is not required under the Federal Meat Inspection Act, doing so can minimize the impact of food safety hazards associated with raw ground meat. For example, the three basic principles of the grinding guidelines are:
“First, grinders and their suppliers should address hazards from pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella in their raw materials, as they are responsible under HACCP to identify and address all hazards reasonably likely to occur.
• Second, grinders and their suppliers should realize that they are in an excellent position to implement process and distribution controls that address public health hazards associated with ground beef, such as E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella.
• Third, there must be an emphasis throughout the production and distribution chain on maintaining the records that are necessary to identify, trace, and retrieve from commerce any ground beef products that may pose a threat to public health. “
One section explains why keeping products from different suppliers separate is important:
“Grinders receiving product from more than one supplier should prevent any mixing of product from different suppliers. Keeping product from different suppliers separate will prevent any potentially E. coli O157:H7-contaminated source material from adulterating source materials from other suppliers. By separating raw materials from different suppliers, grinders will be able to identify the potential source of any E. coli O157:H7-contaminated product should the pathogen be detected. If ground beef produced from raw materials coming from a supplier is confirmed positive for E. coli O157:H7, FSIS intends to notify the supplier that they may have supplied E .coli O157:H7-positive product to a grinding establishment or retail facility.”
Another guidance, Sanitation Guidance For Beef Grinders, issued last week, gives examples of how to keep good records:,
Good records include:
1. Producing store name
2. Address
3. City/state/zip
4. Date of each lot of store ground product produced, where a lot is defined as all
identically labeled product produced from full equipment clean-up to clean-up
5. Exact name/type of store ground product
6. Amount of each lot of store ground product
7. Sell by/use by date and/or production code of each lot of store ground product
8. Other information used to identify store ground product
9. Full name(s) and product code(s) of all source products used to formulate each lot
of store ground product
10. All Federal or State Establishment numbers of each source product contained in
each lot of store ground product
11. Each source product sell by, use by, or production date/code
12. The source firm name, establishment number and use by/sell by/production
date/code for all Shop trim/rework used in each lot of store ground product
13. Date and Time the grinder was sanitized between source materials
14. Bills of Sale (e.g. sales receipts) reflecting Item numbers for each ground beef
product sold to consumers
15. Invoice(s) and Bill(s) of lading for source product(s)
Grinding Record
Time of grind
Lot/Batch Number (lot=same source material)
Exact Name/Type of Product Produced
Package Size of Product Produced
Amount (in pounds) produced
Production Code of Product of Product Produced
Manufacturer, Name of Source Material Used
Supplier, Product Code and/or Pack Date of Source Material Used
Establishment Information from label of Source Product Used (Est. #, ph #, contact info)
Grinder Cleaned and Sanitized Between Source Materials?
If Y, Date and Comments
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