Cathy Perfect - Kern Valley Sun

South Fork Union School District is one of eight Kern County school districts notified it had purchased potentially tainted frozen ground beef. On Feb. 1 the U.S. Department of Agriculture recalled 143 million pounds of frozen beef produced by Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. The Chino-based slaughterhouse provides meats to school lunch programs and is currently the subject of an animal-abuse investigation. It is estimated that 50 million pounds of the product was sold to school districts.

About 150 school districts around the nation have stopped using the company's ground beef. 'As of (Feb. 19) the Westland/Hallmark beef became a Class II recall,' said Sherry Webb, SFUSD cafeteria manager. 'This means we will be able to submit for reimbursement of costs associated with the disposal of the beef we have had on hold since the recall was announced on Feb. 1st. USDA will be replacing our commodities as soon as possible so there isn't a financial loss to the district in having to buy food to replace that (will be) destroyed.'

Officials said it was the largest beef recall in the United States, surpassing a 1999 ban of 35 million pounds of ready-to-eat meats. No illnesses have been linked to the newly recalled meat, and officials said the health threat was likely small.

Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer said his department has evidence that Westland did not routinely contact its veterinarian when 'downer' cattle were apparently too sick or injured to walk into the slaughterhouse, violating health regulations.

Federal regulations call for keeping downed cattle out of the food supply because they may pose a higher risk of contamination from E. coli, salmonella or mad cow disease because they typically wallow in feces and their immune systems are often weak.

"Because the cattle did not receive complete and proper inspection, Food Safety and Inspection Service has determined them to be unfit for human food and the company is conducting a recall," Schafer said in a statement.

Federal officials suspended operations at Westland/Hallmark after an undercover video from the Humane Society of the United States surfaced showing crippled and sick animals being shoved with forklifts.

Officials estimate that about 50 million pounds of the recalled beef went to school programs, but they believe most of the meat probably has already been eaten.

'At this time I do not have an accurate number of pounds involved or costs to South Fork School District,' Webb said. 'We will be assessing the number of cases once we have determined the best way to dispose of the beef from the options given to me by the USDA.

'I am working closely with the MOT supervisor so that we can meet all the USDA requirements¬Ýfor¬Ýdisposal and the documents necessary to apply for a refund,' said Webb.

Federal lawmakers have called for the Government Accountability Office to investigate the safety of meat in the National School Lunch Program.

Upon learning about the recall, some legislators criticized the USDA, saying the federal agency should conduct more thorough inspections to ensure tainted beef doesn't get to the public.

State Senator Dean Florez, D-Shafter, held a hearing Monday in Sacramento to look into how 'downer' cows were allowed into public school’s food supply. He also introduced an amendment to a bill asking the state to reimburse schools and then recoup its expenses from the federal government through legal action he suggested should be taken against the company.