This just in – Cargill Value Added Meats – Retail  (also referred to as CVAM-Retail) will announce a Class I Voluntary Fresh Ground Turkey Recall of approximately 35,709,675 pounds of ground turkey products August 3, 2011.  The product may be linked to an outbreak of Salmonella Heidelberg.  All recalled products were produced at the Springdale, AR plant:  USDA Establishment Number #P-963.

According to the CDC, a total of 77 persons infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Heidelberg have been reported from 26 states between March 1 and August 1, 2011. The number of ill persons identified in each state is as follows: AL (1), AZ (2), CA (6), GA (1), IA (1), IL (7), IN (1), KY (2), LA (1), MA (1), MI (10), MN (1), MO (2), MS (1), NC (1), NE (2), NV (1), NY (2), OH (10), OK (1), OR (1), PA (5), SD (3), TN (2), TX (9), and WI (3).

Among persons for whom information is available, illnesses began on or after March 9, 2011. Ill persons range in age from less than 1 year to 88 years old, with a median age of 23 years old. Forty-eight percent are female. Among the 58 ill persons with available information, 22 (38%) have been hospitalized. One death has been reported.

Good for Cargill for stepping up and recalling the product, and for this:

“It is regrettable that people may have become ill from eating one of our ground turkey products and, for anyone who did, we are truly sorry,” Steve Willardsen, president of Cargill’s turkey processing business, said in a written statement.

Other Large Recalls in my memory:

The Westland/Hallmark recall in 2008 was by far the largest ever – 143,000,000 pounds. (Class II Recall)

Listeria contamination – one in Michigan (Bil-Mar) in 1999 for 35 million pounds and a poultry recall in Pennsylvania (Pilgrim’s Pride) in 2002 for 27 million pounds.

Number 4 – 1977 Hudson Foods Co., with 25 million pounds of ground beef sold to quick-service retailers. This was tied to an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak of about 20 illnesses.

Number 5 was 21.7 million pounds of frozen ground beef patties in 2007 liked to Topps. There were more than 30 E. coli O157:H7 illnesses in eight states.

Number 6 was ConAgra Foods of Colorado with 18.6 million pounds of beef. The outbreak was in 10 states that sickened at least 34 people.

According to efoodalert, Cargill has announced an immediate recall of fresh and frozen ground turkey meat produced at its Springdale, Arkansas production facility from February 20, 2011 through August 2nd.

The turkey meat, which may be contaminated with Salmonella Heidelberg, is being recalled as a result of Cargill’s “…internal investigation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) information that became available on Aug. 1, 2011, as well as an ongoing USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) investigation into multiple illnesses from Salmonella Heidelberg.“

Cargill’s recall announcement continues as follows:Continue Reading Cargill to Recall 35,709,675 Pounds of Fresh Ground Turkey Due to Salmonella Heidelberg Risk