A.K. Dugan, Lebanon Express writer | Posted: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 4:00 pm
The manager of a local cattle auction yard set events in motion last week to see that Lebanon students will see beef on their menu a couple of times this week.
Terry Cowart contacted the Oregon Beef Council, which donated 160 pounds of raw ground beef to Lebanon Community Schools. It was delivered on Friday by Childers Meats of Eugene.
Nutrition Services Director Pam Lessley said the beef will supply two days of meat for all schools - one meal of nachos and another of tacos.
She estimated the value of the beef at about $2 a pound.
"This was very much appreciated," she said.
Students in schools throughout the nation have eaten a lot of chicken and cheese since the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) put a hold on 143 million pounds of beef from Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. on Jan. 30.
The hold was a response to reports that the meat came from downer cows. Cows that cannot walk at the time they are slaughtered are not supposed to be used for food because they are considered more likely to have food-born illnesses such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease) and E. coli.
On Sunday, the USDA announced it was recalling the meat from Westland/ Hallmark, based in Chino, Calif. The company is taking back the beef after the federal Food Safety Inspection Service said it violated inspection rules.
It is the largest recall of beef ever, according to multiple sources.
About 37 million pounds of the meat entered USDA school lunch and other nutrition programs. The USDA has suspended food contracts with Westland/Hallmark.
USDA authorities say much of the meat, produced since February 2006 and distributed to wholesalers around the country, has been eaten. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer said the cows had been inspected prior to slaughter and the meat is not thought to be unsafe. The recall is a precaution made necessary by the rule violations.
The investigation of animal abuse was launched as a result of videotapes secretly made by the Humane Society of the United States.
Lebanon schools kept about 100 cases of raw and precooked beef in freezers, waiting for a final decision about whether it can be served. Because she has two kinds of boxes - plain and with Westland written on some - she is waiting for direction from the state about whether all or some of the beef should be returned.
On Friday, she received clearance from Pierre Meats, which precooks hamburgers, teriyaki dippers and boneless barbecue beef ribs, to use the items they prepared and sent to the district. The precooked items were on hold until Pierre confirmed it did not get the raw meat from Westland.
Lessley also has found another source of raw ground beef and expects deliveries to begin soon.