USDA announces recall of 167,639 pounds of uninspected meat

False establishment number lacks federal grant of inspection

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Wednesday that a North Carolina meat distributor is recalling about 167,639 pounds of raw pork, beef, and goat products that were never inspected by federal regulators. The products, from Star Meat Delivery Inc., carry false marks of inspection, the USDA said.

All products subject to the recall bear the establishment number “EST. 1363,” which the USDA said does not have a federal grant of inspection. The department described the items as misbranded and unsafe to eat, and urged consumers not to consume them.

The raw pork, beef, and goat products were produced on various dates before September 22. They were vacuum-sealed and packed into cardboard boxes for shipment. Individual consumer packages may not bear the false establishment number, the USDA said, because retail stores may have applied their own stickers with pricing and safe-handling instructions.

The recalled products were shipped to A&D Foods, a distributor based in Georgia, for further distribution to retail and restaurant locations nationwide. The full retail distribution list will be published on the FSIS recall website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls, the USDA said.

The problem was discovered during Food Safety and Inspection Service surveillance activities. The USDA said it was not yet clear why the products carried false inspection marks.

As of the recall announcement, there had been no confirmed reports of illness or injury linked to the products. The USDA advised anyone concerned about a possible illness or injury to contact a healthcare provider.

FSIS warned that food produced without federal inspection may contain undeclared allergens, harmful bacteria, or other contaminants that put consumer health and safety at risk. The agency said it was concerned that some products may remain in consumer refrigerators or freezers, as well as in restaurant and retail storage.

Consumers who purchased the recalled products were urged not to consume them. Retailers and restaurants were urged not to sell or serve them. The USDA said the products should be thrown away or returned.

The recalled cardboard boxes contain individually vacuum-packed items labeled under the A&D Foods brand, including goat cut 1-1/2 inch (10 pounds), goat burn skin on cut 1-1/2 inch (10 pounds), slice ribeye 4oz (10 pounds), beef chuck thin sliced KBQ 4 MM (20 pounds), beef oxtail cut (10 pounds), beef short ribs SLD 3/8 inch regular (10 pounds), shanks bone in cut 1.5 (10 pounds), pork ground (10 pounds), pork chorizo (10 pounds), pork chop B/I (10 pounds), pork feet cut 8 PCS (10 pounds), pork feet cut 6 PCS (10 pounds), pork rib pieces prem 1 inch (10 pounds), pork Boston diced (10 pounds), pork Boston slice 1 inch (20 pounds), menudo mix (30 pounds), pork Boston thin sliced 3.5MM (20 pounds), pork hock sliced (10 pounds), beef ribs 4 bone 2 inch C. cut P/Caldo, beef short rib thin sliced, pork Boston butt sliced 4MM, beef short ribs SLD 3/8 inch premium C. cut, and beef feet cut, the USDA said.