More Than 120,000 Pounds of Ground Beef Recalled From Walmart, Other Stores Nationwide Due to E. coli Concerns

Ground beef is the latest food item to be recalled. Per an announcement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service, Lakeside Refrigerated Services is recalling more than 60 tons of ground beef products because they may be contaminated with E.coli. The recall impacts approximately 120,872 pounds of ground beef that was used to make hamburger patties for several different brands, including Nature's Reserve, Thomas Farms, Weis, and Marketside.

The recalled ground beef patties were sold at Walmart, Target, and Weis Markets locations nationwide, as well as other grocery chains throughout the country. Walmart recently shared a list of stores that sold the recalled items, and it included hundreds of outposts across Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, and more.

All of the ground beef products subject to this recall were produced from February 1, 2022, through April 8, 2022. Additionally, each of the recalled products bears the establishment number "EST. 46841" inside the USDA mark of inspection. For a complete list of recalled ground beef products, click here.

According to the USDA, the issue was discovered during routine testing of imported products, and there have been no reports of illness or adverse reactions associated with this recall thus far. However, the agency did note that this particular strain of E.coli—Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) O103—can cause illness up to eight days after the consumption of a contaminated product. Symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea, and in rare cases can lead to a severe kidney infection.

The USDA is urging consumers who have purchased any of the recalled products not to consume them. Instead, they should be thrown out immediately or returned to the place of purchase. Since ground beef is a product people often freeze for later use, the USDA is warning consumers to check their freezers as well.

This latest recall comes about a week after zucchini was recalled from Walmart stores in 18 states due to salmonella concerns, and approximately two weeks after Kinder recalled various chocolate products because of salmonella fears as well.