Sunday, February 9

PETALUMA, Calif. (KGO) -- A Petaluma company is recalling more than 8.7 million pounds of beef products because federal officials say it processed diseased and unhealthy animals without a full federal inspection.

That's just over a year's worth of meat products processed by Rancho Feeding Corp., which has been under scrutiny by the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. The agency said that without full inspection, the recalled products are unfit for human consumption.

The FSIS says the problems were discovered as part of an ongoing investigation, noting that last month the company recalled more than 40,000 pounds of meat products produced on Jan. 8 that also didn't undergo a full inspection.

There have been no reports of illnesses. An FSIS spokesman said because some of the products could still be frozen and in storage, a Class I recall was issued because the meat product could cause serious, adverse health consequences.

Eighteen products in all are being recalled. They include beef carcasses, oxtail, liver, cheeks, tripe, tongue and veal bones.

The products were processed from Jan. 1, 2013, through Jan. 7, 2014, and shipped to distribution centers and retail stores in California, Florida, Illinois and Texas.

The boxes of product are marked "EST. 527" inside the USDA mark of inspection. Each box bears the case code number ending in "3" or "4." The products were produced Jan. 1, 2013 through Jan. 7, 2014 and shipped to distribution centers and retail establishments in California, Florida, Illinois and Texas.

For details on the recall from the FSIS, click here.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report)