The industry is taking appropriate steps to help ensure that U.S. beef is safe from E. coli contamination, according to a recent audit by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
The auditors visited six beef slaughter plants directly responsible for processing about 17 percent of the U.S. beef supply.
"We found that industry was performing thousands of E. coli tests daily generally following the Food Safety and Inspection Service’s (FSIS) recommended procedures. Overall, industry was taking appropriate steps to help ensure that U.S. beef is safe from E. coli contamination, recognizing that regardless of how stringently the industry tests for E. coli, there is always an inherent risk of its presence in slaughter plants,” the report concluded.
The report also noted that the plants that were visited showed strong initiative in their efforts to control contamination and to limit the ability of adulterated meat to make its way in to commerce.
To read the rest of the story, please go to: American Meat Institute
