Midwest holiday tradition poses health risk.
Reuters reports that an Upper Midwest tradition of eating raw ground beef poses an E. Coli risk to consumers. According to a recent report published by the Centers for Disease Control, more than a dozen Wisconsin residents may have been sickened during the 2012 holiday season, and more than 50 cases have been traced to the tradition since 1972.
Although those numbers are relatively small, the symptoms of E. Coli are nothing to mess around with. The Reuters article states: “The bacteria can cause dehydration, bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps and, in the most severe cases, kidney failure.”
Doesn’t sound like the kind of holly jolly Christmas you want to enjoy? Follow the CDC’s guidelines and ensure your burgers are cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees Farenheit.
You can read the full article here.
— photo Mate Marschalko / Flickr
People are stupid and use ground chuck.It has to be freshly ground sirloin by the butcher.
Awww, but they’re so good! The key is to go to a trusted butcher and have him take the center of the loin (that has not been exposed to air) and grind it fresh. Of course you’ll get sick if you buy it from the tube at the supermarket. But we Wisconsinites love out tradition, and tartare is one of my favorites!