Raley’s Supermarkets issued a limited recall of all ground beef products sold in its Antioch store Sunday afternoon because a writing pen may have been accidentally dropped into the grinder.
An employee in Raley’s meat department at the store, located at 3632 Lone Tree Way, discovered particles from a writing pen inside the meat grinder while sanitizing the machine, according to a news release.
Once discovered, all ground beef products were removed from sale. A small amount of the meat was sold, according to company officials.
“Is it life threatening? No. But, at the same time, we don’t want people to pull the meat out of their freezer or refrigerator and bite into little fragments of plastic,” said John Segale, a company spokesman.
The types of ground beef possibly affected include: Natural Angus Ground Beef Does Not Exceed 10% Fat; Fresh Ground Beef Not To Exceed 7% Fat; Fresh Ground Beef Not To Exceed 10% Fat; Fresh Ground Beef Not To Exceed 15% Fat; Premium Ground Beef 3 Pounds or More Not To Exceed 20% Fat: and Premium Ground Beef Not To Exceed 20% Fat, Shop Trim.
Customers who purchased the meat products that afternoon are encouraged to return it to any Raley’s store for a full refund, Segale said. The company has not received any reports of illness.
Contact Paul Burgarino at 925-779-7164. Follow him at Twitter.com/paulburgarino