Wholeness questions at Whole Foods?

Bad news for Whole Foods, the chain that brands itself as "world's leading retailer of natural and organic foods." From the Washington Post:

The meat Whole Foods recalled came from Coleman Natural Foods, which unbeknownst to Whole Foods had processed it at Nebraska Beef, an Omaha meatpacker with a history of food-safety and other violations. Nebraska Beef last month recalled more than 5 million pounds of beef produced in May and June after its meat was blamed for another E. coli outbreak in seven states. On Friday it recalled an additional 1.2 million pounds of beef produced on June 17, June 24 and July 8, which included products eventually sold to Whole Foods. The recall is not related to the recent spate of E. coli illnesses among Boy Scouts at a gathering in Goshen, Va. Whole Foods officials are investigating why they were not aware that Coleman was using Nebraska Beef as a processor, spokeswoman Libba Letton said.

I'd like to add an essential point for those not familiar with the way that beef is raised to the point where it reaches your table. Much focus is given to the care and condition of cattle, including the use of antibiotics, hormones and other animal byproducts in the feed cattle are fed. However, most of the cases of E. coli contamination of beef occur as the result of unsanitary conditions and practices at plants where the cattle are sent for slaughter and processing after they leave the farm or feedlot. So regardless of the care that is put into choosing supplier of beef who does not feed antibiotics, hormones or anything else of concern, the end product can still present a hazard if the same care is not taken at the point where it is processed. With that in mind, I tried to trace Whole Foods' knowledge of who actually processed the meat. A quick google search on Coleman Natural Foods and you discover the following at Coleman Natural's website contact page:

***Effective June 1, Meyer Natural Angus has purchased the beef division of Coleman Natural Foods.  For questions about Coleman Natural Foods fresh beef or frozen raw hamburgers, please contact:

Meyer Natural Angus
970-292-5558 OR 1-800-856-6765
dholzer@re-meyer.com

For more information, check out the press release.

Follow the link and read the press release dated April 3, 2008:

Meyer Natural Angus announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the natural and organic beef business of Coleman Natural Foods LLC. The companies expect to conclude the transaction June 1.

Most of the articles I read on the story continue to identify Coleman as the supplier, but no mention of the processor. The Denver Post being the exception:

Coleman Natural Foods, based in Golden, sold its beef business to Loveland-based Meyer Natural Angus on June 1. The deal called for Meyer to sell beef under the Coleman label to existing customers. Neither Coleman nor Meyer spokesmen could be reached for comment Saturday night. "While Coleman Natural Beef is a relatively small supplier for Whole Foods Market, we are extremely disappointed that we must now question Coleman's assurances," Edmund Lamacchia, global vice president of procurement for Whole Foods, said in a news release.

Why is the sale of Coleman Natural Beef notable? It introduces an opportunity for a change in the steps of production, from farm to table, of the beef that is being sold to Whole Foods customers. Did Coleman Natural Beef always use Nebraska Beef for a processor or is this a new development subsequent to the sale of their beef division to Meyer Natural Angus? This brings me to something else that stands out from the articles I read on the Whole Foods' recall. The Associated Press reports:

Federal authorities last month assured consumers that a meat plant linked to nearly 50 illnesses caused by tainted ground beef had made enough changes after a recall to ensure that its products were safe. Less than a month later, the same processor has recalled 1.2 million pounds of other beef products that might have sickened more than 30 people.

The first recall took place June 30 and was expanded July 3 according to the news release from the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service. An article yesterday in the Boston Globe, reporting from one of two states where Whole Foods customers have reported becoming ill:

This is the third time this summer that consumers have had to worry about what's in their refrigerators. First, it was fear of tomatoes tainted with salmonella - though the culprits turned out be jalapeño peppers. Then, worries about contaminated ground beef at the Kroger grocery chain. This time, the source of the dangerous meat was probably a Whole Foods supplier, Coleman Natural Beef, whose meat is processed by Nebraska Beef Ltd., which was also involved in the Kroger contamination. Whole Foods said it had demanded promises from Coleman that none of its beef was tainted. "At the time of the previous recall, Whole Foods Market received assurances from Coleman Natural Beef that no product delivered to Whole Foods Market was linked to the recall," the Austin, Texas-based company said in a statement. "Those assurances are now in question."

Here is where I begin to question various reports from Whole Foods to the media. Whole Foods claims they were not aware Coleman was carrying beef processed at Nebraska Beef. They continue to refer to Coleman Natural Beef instead of Meyer Natural Angus. So did Whole Foods make the correct inquiries with regards to the sale of Coleman Natural Beef to determine that the product would meet their standards for quality and safety? Did Whole Foods, according to at least one press report, who questioned and received assurances from Coleman at the time of the previous recall, have knowledge that Nebraska Beef was a processor for Coleman's or Meyer Natural Angus? Or did Whole Foods inquire just as a routine cautionary measure? Should Whole Foods customers feel confident they are being told the truth or being fed some bull? I am curious about how Whole Foods was caught carrying a product from a company known to have a record of food safety violations. The Washington Post article covers some of Nebraska Beef's tainted history. After reading about Nebraska Beef's unsavory past, it is not a company I would expect to meet either the philosophy of Whole Foods or the prices that Whole Foods customers pay for what is supposed to be a superior and safer product.