The Role of Beef in the American Diet - International Meat Secretariat

The Role of Beef in the American Diet
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ganisms such as E. coli O157:H7 in meat has also been approved and is
beginning to be used for ground beef by some retailers (including
Wegman’s, Dairy Queen, Omaha Steaks, and very recently, Giant — a
major supermarket chain in the Washington, DC area). Irradiation is discussed
in more detail below.
Although all of these steps are valuable, none of them guarantees
that ground beef will be free from E. coli O157:H7. Steam vacuuming
and similar technologies are not always 100% effective, and the fact
that a sample from a particular batch of ground beef tested negative for
the organism does not provide 100% assurance that other portions of the
same batch are not contaminated. Therefore, it is extremely important
for consumers to protect themselves by always cooking ground beef to
at least 160°F and preventing raw meat from cross-contaminating other
foods.
Salmonella
The bacterium Salmonella is one of the leading causes of foodborne
illness. It causes diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps, usually lasting
for 4–7 days (58). The disease, which is called salmonellosis, can be
serious or even fatal in infants, the elderly, and those with impaired
immune systems, but it is usually not serious in other people.
Salmonellosis is usually a foodborne disease, but it can also be spread
by contact with pets or other animals, especially reptiles, and by personto-person
contact. Fortunately, Salmonella bacteria in foods can be
destroyed by cooking.
Salmonella is often found in raw meat and poultry — though less
often in beef than in chicken or turkey. In recent U.S. Department of
Agriculture tests, Salmonella was found in 29.2% of ground turkey
samples, 15.7% of ground chicken samples, and 3.4% of ground beef
samples (59).
The good news about Salmonella is that both the frequency of contamination
of raw meat and poultry (59) and the number of cases of illness
caused by this organism (60) have decreased substantially since the
mid-1990s. These decreases are believed to be linked to the implementation
of improved science-based inspection and a systematic hazard
control program called HACCP (for Hazard Analysis and Critical
Control Points) during the same time period (59).
Listeria monocytogenes
Listeria monocytogenes is commonly found in the soil, on plants,
and elsewhere in the environment. In most people, exposure to this bac-