NEW YORK, June 4 (Xinhua) -- U.S. agriculture officials are warning that ground beef sold at Whole Foods markets nationwide may be contaminated with potentially dangerous E. coli bacteria, reported The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Officials issued a public health alert for 1-pound, vacuum-packed packages of Organic Rancher beef, produced on May 22 and May 23, by NPC Processing Inc., of Shelburne, Vermont. The products have use-by dates of June 19 and June 20.
The U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) did not request a recall because the products are no longer available for purchase. However, they may still be in consumers' refrigerators or freezers.
The meat was produced in Australia or Uruguay and processed in the United States. It was sent to distributors in Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois and Maryland and then to Whole Foods stores nationwide.
The problem was discovered when company officials notified FSIS that they had shipped beef products that tested positive for E. coli O157:H7, a type of bacteria that can cause serious illness, according to the report.
