Thread: Some north Georgia schools pull potentially tainted meat fro

Posted: Wednesday, February 13th 2008 at 2:18pm

Some north Georgia schools pull potentially tainted meat from shelves
By The Associated Press

North Georgia schools ordered to pull meat from their shelves ATLANTA - Some North Georgia schools are among 28 school districts in the state who have been ordered to stop serving potentially tainted beef. Barrow, Forsyth, Gwinnett, Jackson, and Pickens county schools have all been asked to pull the meat from their shelves.

The Georgia Department of Education has ordered the school districts to stop serving beef supplied by a California slaughterhouse under federal investigation for mistreating animals.

Georgia Schools Superintendent Kathy Cox says 28 districts so far have pulled the meat after the U.S. Department of Agriculture alerted state officials that it could be tainted. Cox says officials won't know for sure whether the meat was tainted until February 19 when federal authorities finish their investigation into the Chino, California,-based Westland/Hallmark Meat Company.

Federal officials are looking into whether the slaughterhouse shipped meat from disabled animals -- known as ``downer'' cows because they are considered too sick or injured to walk. Federal regulations call for keeping downer cows out of the food supply because they may pose a higher risk of E. coli, salmonella contamination or mad cow disease.

The facility is a major supplier to a USDA program that distributes beef through the National School Lunch Program.

Georgia officials do not know if the suspect meat was served to students. Cox says there are no reports of students feeling sick.

States have been banning the Westland meat in schools since the USDA alerted states to the potentially tainted beef on January 31st. Those states include Idaho, South Dakota, Hawaii, Montana, Minnesota, Oregon, Iowa and Washington state.

http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=206929

Cute.....this gets so disgusting.....

Makes me want to become a vegetarian.

Meat packing plants want illegal wokers not only to pay cheap wages,but to cut corners without anyone in the work force who would tell anyone outside the plant what is going on.Also, if an illegal has a bad accident and survives-the management tells victim that they found drugs in thier blood and wil turn them in unless they go away quietly