Beef Product Update

A message from the Upper Moreland School District
Food Services Department

Over the past few weeks, the largest beef recall in our nation’s history has received significant focus and media coverage. As many of you are no doubt aware, much of the attention paid to this recall has emphasized the connection between the Westland/Hallmark meat packing company and school lunch programs. To date, over 190 schools from across Pennsylvania have had products recalled or placed on “hold.” The recall, a “Class Two,” means that none of the products have been found to be potentially harmful or tainted in any way.

Since the initial recalls, our Upper Moreland School District Food Services Department has been working in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and our beef processor and distributor. As information has become available on a daily basis, we have worked to determine if our inventory contained any of the products in question.

On Thursday morning, February 21, we received notification from our distributor via electronic mail and phone contact as well as from the Pennsylvania Department of Education to place a hold on all beef burgers from our processor. We did so immediately, securely marking and shipping to central storage all beef burger products in question.
This directive appears to have been done for precautionary purposes. In checking with the processor our lot numbers did not appear on the USDA hold list and we did not nor did we ever have any of the lot numbers on recall. The 53 cases of beef patties sent to central storage are to be picked up by our distributor on Friday, February 22, 2008.
Please note that not all beef has been returned to our processor. The processor in question only produced our beef burger products; other beef products came from a different processor.

As a result of our immediate shortage of beef burger products, the next few weeks of cafeteria menus at the middle and high school have been revised. Revisions to the middle and high school menus are in place on our website. Beef burger products have not been served in our elementary cafeteria since February 12; the March menu which will be distributed on February 27 will not include beef burgers. Within a few weeks, we will have a supply of beef burgers from a different processor.

In the Upper Moreland School District, we follow the strictest food safety standards on a daily basis. Nothing is more important than the health and well-being of our children. We continue to work hard to keep your children safe and well fed!