Source: Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 9/28/11

On the morning after the announcement of another development in recent Cargill ground turkey recalls, USDA Undersecretary for Food Safety Elisabeth Hagen told reporters the agency will tighten poultry regulation.

Hagen said in a briefing today that Cargill's recall of more than 36 million pounds of ground turkey over two recalls in August and September, was a wake-up call, according to a report by Bloomberg.

“You’re going to see some steps from the agency on ground poultry,” she was quoted as saying, without elaborating. She added that FSIS is taking “a proactive approach to prevent people from getting sick.”

USDA announced late Tuesday that a sample of ground turkey associated with the 185,000 pounds of product Cargill recalled on Sept. 11 tested positive for Salmonella Heidelberg, the same strain in the outbreak that spurred the company’s Aug. 3 recall.

The outbreak has sickened more than 100 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.