080207 NMA Statement on Beef Recall

Oakland, CA – National Meat Association supports today’s decision by Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. to voluntarily recall products that the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) has determined to be unfit for human consumption. The company is now reaching out to inform those who purchased such product to alert them to the recall.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today a Class 2 recall of product. When the USDA’s Recall Committee recommends a recall, they classify the recall into three classes based on the relative health risk: Class 2 recalls involve a potential health situation in which there is a remote possibility of adverse health consequences from eating the food.

USDA has determined there is evidence that the company did not consistently contact the FSIS public health veterinarian in situation in which cattle became non-ambulatory after they has passed ante-mortem inspection. According to a USDA announcement this afternoon, the circumstances should have been identified to the veterinarian for closer scrutiny in the post mortem inspection process.

The ban on non-ambulatory or ‘downer’ cattle is but one of many steps in a robust system to produce safe beef. It is not the only step. The beef that we produce under federal inspection is safeguarded by multiple precautionary measures that assure its wholesomeness.

NMA stands today alongside the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) to support USDA’s actions to enforce the laws that not only protect the welfare of animals entering the food chain, but also to ensure the safest meat supply in the world.

National Meat Association is a non-profit trade association. Since 1946, NMA has represented meat packers and processors, equipment manufacturers and food suppliers who provide services to the meat industry. The association has members throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Australia and Mexico.

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