Corrected Information in RHSCO Burrito Recall

WASHINGTON, October 2, 1998--RHSCO Enterprises, a Chicago food processing firm, has provided USDA with corrected information on a September 18 voluntary product recall of about 43,160 pounds of beef and bean burritos associated with short-term illness that consists of nausea and vomiting.

Product that may be identified by consumers includes all 5-oz. beef and cheese burritos bearing "Est. 1132" inside the USDA inspection seal. The product names and the last 4 digits of the Universal Product Code (UPC) on the product label can also aid consumers in identifying the products. They are:

• "LA MARCA RED HOT CHUNKY BEEF AND BEAN BURRITO" (last 4 digits of Universal Product Code are 8966);
• "TANGO RED HOT BEEF AND BEAN BURRITO, TEXTURED VEGETABLE PROTEIN ADDED (last 4 digits of UPC are 8966);
• "LA MARCA BEEF AND BEAN BURRITO" (last 4 digits of UPC are 8960); and
• "TANGO BEEF AND BEAN BURRITO, TEXTURED VEGETABLE PROTEIN ADDED" (last 4 digits of UPC are 9110).

"Because of the potential hazard, we urge consumers to avoid eating the recalled products," said Thomas J. Billy, administrator of USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service. "We urge consumers who may have purchased suspect product to return it to the place of purchase," Billy said.

On September 18, FSIS requested the company to recall products sold to institutions after it was learned that the product was epidemiologically linked to outbreaks of vomiting among students in schools in Kansas and Georgia. In follow-up investigation of that recall, FSIS enforcement officials learned that the product had also been distributed at retail outlets in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. In Tennessee and perhaps in other states the product has been sold in vending machines.

Consumers with questions about the recall may phone the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-800-535-4555. The hotline can be reached from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Eastern Time) Monday through Friday.

#

NOTE: Access news releases and other information at the FSIS Web site on the Internet's World Wide Web at http://www.fsis.usda.gov