Recalls, voluntary or not, occur more often than you might think. Often these recalls are centralized to a very specific region, with few crossing state lines in a problematic way. However, that doesn't make the news of a recall any less important—in fact, it can help keep you aware of the food you purchase on a regular basis. On December 26, 2017, the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the USDA announced a recall for Swift Beef Company products sold in H-E-B stores as an H-E-B product.
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Based in Cactus, Texas, Swift Beef Co. is recalling about 4,702 pounds of beef stew product that could potentially be contaminated with foreign matter, specifically plastic and metal. The Class I recall presents a health hazard situation where there's reasonable belief that the product will cause serious health consequences or death.
The boneless beef stew items were produced on December 13, 2017. Here are the items subject to recall, per the press release:
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Cases containing six 5-lb. bulk cryovac plastic bags containing fresh beef stew meat intended for H-E-B grocery store retailer re-package. The affected case code is 69404.
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Re-packaged various weight beef stew meat trays that also contain separately wrapped vegetables. The meat trays are marked with establishment 7231 on the side of the tray.
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Re-packaged various weight beef stew labeled as H-E-B brand: Beef Stew Meat Tenderized RP, Beef Stew Meat RP, Beef Stew Meat VP, Beef Stew Meat-CR VP, Beef Stew Meat Tenderized VP, Beef Stew Meat CP, and Beef Stew Kit.
The particular products bear establishment number "EST. 3D" next to the USDA mark of inspection, or Est. 7231 on the side of the tray. These packages were shipped throughout Texas.
On Christmas Eve, the problem was discovered when H-E-B in San Antonio, Texas opened the boxes. That day, H-E-B locked the sales of all stew meat and pulled products from the shelves. There have been no reported illnesses or adverse reactions to consuming the product, but consumers can contact Cameron Bruett, Head of Corporate Affairs, at (970) 506-7801.
