AMI responds to FSIS “Big 6” E. coli ban, says it won’t benefit public health
The American Meat Institute has issued a response to the USDA’s decision to ban six additional strains of the E. coli pathogen. The group criticized the move, saying that the decision will likely cost the industry millions of dollars and may not have any affects on improving food safety.
“The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) desire to eliminate non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (nSTEC) from the U.S. beef supply is something the beef industry strongly shares. But USDA’s announcement today declaring six strains of naturally occurring nSTEC to be adulterants in ground beef is premised upon the notion that the government can make products safe simply by banning a pathogen,” said AMI Executive Vice President James H. Hodges.