“Diseased” cattle, inadequate inspection trigger recall
Agriculture authorities are accusing a California company of slaughtering thousands of cattle without adequate federal inspection, including “diseased and unsound” animals.
The company, Rancho Feeding Corporation in Petaluma, is recalling whatever remains unconsumed out of 8.7 million pounds of beef distributed through the entirety of 2013 and the first week of 2014, according to an announcement from the Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
FSIS spokeswoman Stacy W. Kish declined to say what conditions led the agency to describe some of the animals as “diseased and unsound,” citing a pending investigation by the USDA Office of the Inspector General. But she said the company’s slaughter operations were shut down and the FSIS administrator had ordered a thorough examination of the company’s practices, procedures, and management.
A spokesman for the USDA Office of the Inspector General said that office could not provide any further comment.
The agency’s announcement states that the unfit animals were slaughtered “without the benefit or full benefit of federal inspection” but does not explain how or why that happened or why the meat was labeled as USDA-inspected.
The beef from adult cattle and veal calves had been shipped to distribution centers throughout the U.S.
More information will be published here.