A successful recall collected a “small batch” of processed meat before it got to consumers this week. Tony Wald owns Braunger Meats, a supplier for restaurants and cafeterias. He says in 113 years in business, this is the first positive test for e-coli, and it happened in a small batch, 330 pounds. Wald says the system worked when e-coli bacteria was detected in a batch of ground beef at the Sioux City processing plant. He says as a USDA plant, federal inspectors are there every day testing on a random basis. Parts of that batch had been sold to four customers and all was retrieved so there’s no threat to the public. Wald says the plan for what to do was already on file at the plant, and everybody did their part to put it into action. They contacted sales staff and customers, shut down the grinding operation where the germ was found, and sterilized the whole place. Today’s the first day the plant is expected to be up and running again. Braunger Meats sells only to restaurants and institutions, and has about two thousand customers.
