USDA: Safeway, Target, Sam's Club stores nationwide may have received recalled ground beef

WASHINGTON -- The latest round of recalled ground beef due to possible E.coli contamination was possibly sold at Safeway, Target and Sam's Club stores nationwide, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The USDA believes the Save Mart in Roseville in Placer County and Meijer stores nationwide may have also received ground beef products that have been recalled by Cargill Meat Solutions.

"This list may not include all retail locations that have received the recalled product or may include retail locations that did not actually receive the recalled product," said the USDA on its website.

The E. coli outbreak killed one person and sickened 17. On Sept. 19, the USDA said that Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan, Colorado, was recalling more than 132,000 pounds of ground beef products made from the chuck portion of the carcass that may be contaminated with Escherichia coli O26.

VIDEO: Here's what you need to know about E. Coli

The items were produced and packaged on June 21 and shipped to retailers nationwide.

The products include 3-pound, 10-pound and 20-pound packages of ground beef under the Our Certified, Excel, Sterling Silver, Certified and Fire River Farms brands with July 11 use or freeze by dates.

The Cargill plant had a smaller recall of Excel ground beef in August, but no illnesses had been reported at that time.

WTVD's sister station KGO reached out Safeway. The company said in a statement:

"All Cargill products in our Northern California stores were removed during the previous Cargill product recall in August. We were overly expansive in our August notice to consumers and included any and all product that could have come into contact with Cargill ground beef. We also asked our customers to please check their freezers and discard any ground beef product at that time. We remind our customers, as always, that whenever they have question about whether a product is subject to recall to discard it and to contact their store regarding a refund."

E. coli is known to cause stomach cramps, diarrhea, vomiting, and fever.

Infections can develop as soon as one day after infection and as late as 10 days. Most people begin to fall ill within three to four days.

Go here for more information from the USDA about the recall and to see a list of all the products affected.