The Topps Meat Company, LLC was a privately-owned meat processing company based in
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The company produced and distributed frozen ground beef patties and other meat products processed at its plant in Elizabeth and posted about $8.8 million a year in sales, according to information reported by
Dun & Bradstreet
The Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc. (D&B) is an American company that provides commercial data, analytics, and insights for businesses. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the company offers a wide range of products and services for risk a ...
.
In 2007, the Topps Meat Company's products were linked to an outbreak of ''Escherichia coli'' O157:H7 (''E. coli'' O157:H7) infections and, on October 5 of that year, the company ceased operations.
History
The Topps Meat Company was founded in Manhattan, New York by Benjamin Sachs in 1940. He would later sell the company to his son, Steven Sachs. Prior to relocating to New Jersey, Joseph D’Urso became vice president of the company.
In 2003, the company was purchased by Strategic Investment and Holdings, an investment firm based in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
, following the death of D'Urso.
Prior to the 2007 ''E. coli'' O157:H7 outbreak Topps Meat was implicated in, an inspection report by the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...
in 2005 discovered that the company had received processed meat contaminated with the bacteria, which they began to process before being notified of the contamination. The same year, the company settled a $1.7 million lawsuit with a maintenance worker whose arm was amputated by an industrial processor and was sued by a 9-year-old girl who claimed to have fallen ill after eating a hamburger made by the company.
''Escherichia coli'' O157:H7 outbreak and closure
The first reported case of illness linked to ''E. coli'' O157:H7 contamination occurred on July 5, 2007. The first positive test results for ''E. coli'' contamination of Topps' products were returned on September 7, 2007, but the USDA waited to confirm the tests before ordering a recall 18 days later, a decision that was met with criticism.
In September 2007, Topps Meat Company ultimately recalled 21.7 million pounds of frozen ground
beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...
products due to ''Escherichia coli'' O157:H7 contamination concerns. Product samples subsequently tested positive for contamination with E. coli.
On October 4, 2007, a
class-action lawsuit
A class action is a form of lawsuit.
Class Action may also refer to:
* ''Class Action'' (film), 1991, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
* Class Action (band), a garage house band
* "Class Action" (''Teenage Robot''), a 2002 e ...
was filed against Topps Meat over the contaminated meat and its consequences. The same day, the
USDA
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...
served Topps Meat with a "notice of intended enforcement" after discovering "inadequate process controls" in the company’s non-ground beef production processes. On October 5, 2007, Topps Meat ceased operations; 77 workers were laid off while about 10 others remained employed to assist the
USDA
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...
's investigation.
A total of 40 people in eight states fell ill after consuming hamburgers made by Topps Meat Co. At the time, the recalls of Topps' products were the second-largest beef recall in
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
history, after
Hudson Foods Company
Hudson Foods, Inc. was a meat processing company founded in Rogers, Arkansas in 1972.
History
Hudson Foods was founded on February 2, 1972 by James T. "Red" Hudson, who previously worked as a feed-store clerk for Ralston Purina before becoming ...
's recall of 25 million pounds of ground beef in 1997.