Personal Injury Law

Dallas City Packing Failed To Remove Tonsils In Cowheads: FSIS Forces Recall

Just under one million pounds of cattle heads produced over the past 18 months by Dallas-based Dallas City Packing Inc. are being recalled because tonsils were not completely removed.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service, 941,271 pounds of cattle heads produced as long ago as Feb. 5, 2007 to as recently as Aug. 5, 2008 are being recalled for not being compliant with regulations that require the removal of tonsils from cattle of all ages.

Tonsils are considered a specified risk material (SRM) and must be removed from cattle of all ages in accordance with FSIS regulations. SRMs are tissues that are known to contain the infective agent in cattle infected with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), as well as materials that are closely associated with these potentially infective tissues. Therefore, FSIS prohibits SRMs from use as human food to minimize potential human exposure to the BSE agent.

The cattle heads were primarily distributed to retail establishments in Texas as well as distribution centers in California, Colorado, Louisiana, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Texas.

Products subject to recall include:

• Various weight boxes of “2-BEEF HEAD.” Each shipping package bears the establishment number “EST. 156” inside the USDA mark of inspection, as well as a packaging date between “2 05 7” and
• “8 05 8” stamped on the side of the box.
• Various weight boxes of “3-BEEF HEAD.” Each shipping package bears the establishment number “EST. 156” inside the USDA mark of inspection, as well as a packaging date between “2 05 7” and
• “8 05 8” stamped on the side of the box.

Full post as published by Mad Cow Blog on August 07, 2008 (boomark / email).