Editing Ground beef (section)

== Food safety ==
[[Ground meat#Food safety|Food safety of ground meat]] is problematic; bacterial contamination occurs frequently. Undercooked hamburgers contaminated with [[Escherichia coli O157:H7|''E. coli'' O157:H7]] were responsible for four deaths in the U.S. in 1993, and hundreds of people fell ill.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ou.edu/deptcomm/dodjcc/groups/02C2/Jack%20in%20the%20Box.htm|title=Case Study: Jack in the Box E. coli crisis |publisher=[[The University of Oklahoma]] |access-date=April 8, 2014}}</ref> Ground beef must be cooked to 72&nbsp;°C (160&nbsp;°F) to ensure all bacterial contamination—whether it be endogenous to the product or contaminated after purchasing by the consumer—is killed. The color of cooked meat does not always indicate the beef has reached the required temperature; beef can brown before reaching 68&nbsp;°C (155&nbsp;°F).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/Resources/TempRulesPoster.pdf |title=FSIS Directive - Safe and Suitable Ingredients Used in the Production of Meat, Poulty, and Egg Products |publisher=[[United States Department of Agriculture]] |website=Fns.usda.gov |date=March 9, 2010 |access-date=April 25, 2016 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100309124902/http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/Resources/TempRulesPoster.pdf |archive-date=March 9, 2010 }}</ref>

To ensure the safety of food distributed through the [[National School Lunch Program]], food banks, and other federal food and nutrition programs, the United States Department of Agriculture has established food safety and quality requirements for the ground beef it purchases. A 2010 National Research Council report reviewed the scientific basis of the Department's ground beef safety standards, compared the standards to those used by large retail and commercial food service purchasers of ground beef, and examined ways to establish periodic evaluations of the [[Federal Purchase Ground Beef Program]].<ref name=Dels10>{{cite web|url=http://www.dels.nas.edu/Report/Evaluation-Food-Safety/13069 |title=An Evaluation of the Food Safety Requirements of the Federal Purchase Ground Beef Program |date=2010 |publisher=[[National Academy of Sciences]], Division on Earth and Life Studies |website=Dels.nas.edu |access-date=November 11, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110319065440/http://www.dels.nas.edu/Report/Evaluation-Food-Safety/13069 |archive-date=March 19, 2011}}</ref> The report found that although the safety requirements could be strengthened using scientific concepts, the prevention of future outbreaks of foodborne diseases will depend on eliminating contamination during production and ensuring meat is properly cooked before it is served.<ref name=Dels10/>

The [[2013 horse meat scandal]] found traces of horse meat in many UK and European foods and ready meals that were mostly labelled as being minced/ground beef products.