Kansas cases of E. coli tied to vacuum-packaged steaks

? Kansas is investigating an E. coli case linked to a national investigation of the potentially deadly bacteria in other states, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment said Tuesday.

The national investigation found the common source of the E. coli cases has been vacuumed-packed frozen steaks sold door-to-door and distributed to restaurants, institutions and retail stores, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service.

Stampede Meat Inc., a Chicago processor of steaks and other meat products, announced on Sunday it was voluntarily recalling nearly 739,000 pounds of vacuum-packaged steaks and other meat products that may be contaminated with E. coli.

The products may be linked to five E. coli illnesses in Minnesota, Kansas and Michigan, federal health officials said.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service said the products subject to the recall were produced between March 17 and March 22 and bore the establishment code “EST. 19113” inside the USDA inspection mark.

Since May 1, seven cases of E. coli have been confirmed in Kansas, compared with two cases typically seen in the same period. The other Kansas cases are not related to the multistate outbreak and not related to each other.

Steaks generally are not an E. coli source because the bacteria usually is on the outside of the steak and is killed when the meat is cooked. But processes to tenderize steaks can transfer bacteria to the inside of the meat, where it can survive if the meat is not cooked thoroughly.

E. coli symptoms include stomach cramps and diarrhea and usually occur two to five days after eating contaminated food.

A complete list of potentially contaminated meats can be found at:www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/recalls/rnrfiles/rnr028-2003.htm. People who still have meat involved in the recall should contact USDA at 1-800-535-4555 for specific instructions.