N.J. company's recall of hamburgers expands

0 Comments | USA TODAY, October, 2007 | by Elizabeth Weise and Steve Sternberg

A New Jersey company has expanded a recall of frozen hamburgers to 21.7million pounds of patties because they may be contaminated with a deadly type of E. coli, making it the second-largest ground beef recall in U.S. history.

Topps Meat Company of Elizabeth, N.J., originally recalled 332,000 pounds of pre-formed, frozen hamburgers on Tuesday. It broadened the recall Saturday.

The recalled packages carry the number "9748" inside the U.S. Department of Agriculture mark of inspection and have a "sell by" date or a "best if used by" date between Sept. 25 of this year and Sept. 25, 2008.

Most of the recalled products are 10-pound boxes of pre-formed hamburgers sold to institutional customers such as restaurants, hospitals and schools. However, some are...