Good morning,
I just read a very frightening article about the
processing of ground beef products in the New York Times. My family
enjoys your beef products, but after reading this article, I am
concerned about how your hamburgers/ground beef are processed. Do you
have your own processing facility? Do you test the beef before
grinding for e coli contamination? Has Tall Grass ever had recall or
had a claim filled against it for illness due to possible
contamination of its beef products?
I look forward to your reply.
Suzanne
Good Morning Suzanne,
I also read the same article and I can assure you that there is nothing
to worry about with Tallgrass Beef. There are several reasons why you can
feel very safe with our ground beef:
1. We do not use a large corporate owned processing plant, but rather a
local family owned processing plant. Almost all of the recalls and issues
come from the large corporate owned plants. Small, family run plants tend
to be very clean and sanitary. Our plant is 100% USDA Inspected.
2. Grass fed cattle are inherently free of the pathogenic forms of E. coli
(0157:H7 is the pathogenic strain that causes the majority of the recalls
and sickness). Because our cattle are not fed grain and are not confined to
feedlots, they are relatively clean, both inside and out. The majority of E. coli
comes into processing plants on the dirty hides of grain fed feedlot cattle
and in their gut. The pathogenic forms of E. coli are acid-resistant
strains that cannot exist in the guts of grass fed cattle. Grain feeding
changes the gut pH from a more neutral pH to an acidic pH. This is what
allows the acid-resistant E. coli 0157:H7 bacteria to grow and thrive.
3. Our cattle are the very first cattle processed each day in the family
owned plant we use. That means they are not mixed with any other cattle and
the plant is completely clean and sanitary when our cattle are processed.
There is no chance of cross-contamination between our cattle and other
cattle.
4. The plant we use is heavily inspected and routinely audited to assure
safe, wholesome meat processing. They have passed, with very high marks,
every audit ever conducted at the plant. They are also routinely audited
for animal care and welfare, plus worker safety and welfare.
5. Even with all of these safeguards and checks and balances, we do still
test EVERY single batch of hamburger produced to be certain there is NO
presence of any pathogenic bacteria or other pathogenic organisms. EVERY
batch of our product comes with what is called a COA or Certificate of
Analysis, guaranteeing that the meat is free of pathogens and perfectly safe
to eat.
6. We have NEVER had a recall of any of our products, nor has anyone ever
filed a complaint of sickness.
7. We have a complete traceback system in place that allows us to trace
ever pound of beef that we produce back to the processing plant, to the farm
where it was born and raised, to the individual animal, and to the specific
date of processing.
8. Finally, Tallgrass Beef is the ONLY beef that my family eats. We do not
have any other beef products in our home and have not since the inception of
Tallgrass Beef Company. I do have children at home and they eat no beef but
Tallgrass beef.
For further information on the safety and wholesomeness of grass fed beef,
please go to our website at www.tallgrassbeef.com and check out the "Why
It's Better" page. Click on the "Food Safety and Wholesomeness" button and
you will find detailed information related to the safety of grass fed beef,
especially pertaining to E. coli and other pathogenic bacteria.
If you need further information, please do not hesitate to contact me. We
care greatly about our customers and do appreciate your concern and your
inquiry.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/health/04meat.html
Allen Williams, Ph.D.
Tallgrass Beef Company, LLC
103 East Main Street, Suite 1
Sedan, KS 67361
Mobile (662) 312-6826
Office (877) 822-8283
http://www.tallgrassbeef.com/
