The Recall Desk
Agency classClass IOur severity:SevereUSDA FSIS·041-2015·Announced 2015-03-06

Rio Tex Wholesale Meats Recalls Ready-To-Eat Beef Products Due To Listeria

Rio Tex Wholesale Meats is recalling approximately 58,180 pounds of ready-to-eat beef products due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

The agency’s classification

USDA FSIS: Class I

Class I is a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.

This is the agency’s own classification, taken from its notice. The severity score below is our assessment, not the agency’s. How recall classes work

What this means for you

Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 4/5 (Severe).

The hazard poses a serious risk of illness, injury, or structural failure. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.

Our severity reasoning: The agency classified this recall as Class I — a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death. On that classification alone this is scored Severe; a score of Critical is reserved for recalls where a death or serious injury was reported. The agency gives the reason as: "Product Contamination"

Plain-English summary

Rio Tex Wholesale Meats, a Mercedes, Texas establishment, is recalling approximately 58,180 pounds of ready-to-eat beef products that may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced the recall on March 6, 2015. The affected products were produced between March 25, 2014, and February 19, 2015, and include various Hausman Foods and Rio-Tex-Meats beef items such as taco filling, barbacoa, and carne guisada. These products bear the establishment number EST. 13545 inside the USDA mark of inspection and were shipped for hotels, restaurants, and institutional use in Texas.

The recall was initiated after FSIS personnel reviewed historical sampling data in the context of recent intensified verification testing, which revealed multiple Listeria monocytogenes positives. The data showed a recurrence of Lm isolates with indistinguishable Pulsed-field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns over time in environmental samples and on ready-to-eat meat products. This indicates insufficient sanitary measures to prevent contamination of the production environment and the products with Lm.

Consumption of food contaminated with L. monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, a serious infection that primarily affects older adults, persons with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women and their newborns. Symptoms can include fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions. In pregnant women, the infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn. FSIS advises all consumers to reheat ready-to-eat product until steaming hot. Persons in higher-risk categories who experience flu-like symptoms within two months after eating contaminated food should seek medical care and inform their health care provider about the consumption.

The recalled product

Product
Rio Tex Wholesale Meats Recalls Ready-To-Eat Beef Products Due To Possible Listeria Contamination
Category
Food — Deli / Ready-to-Eat
Hazard

Distribution

Distributed in 1 state:

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