WASHINGTON – Lake City, Ga.-based Kabob’s Acquisition Inc. launched a recall of approximately 44,850 lbs. of raw, not-ready-to-eat meat and poultry hors d’oeuvres that may be adulterated with E. coli O121, the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the US Dept. of Agriculture reported.

The hors d’oeuvres items were produced on various dates between Dec. 8, 2015 and Jan. 15, 2016. FSIS said the affected products bear establishment number “Est. 6640” or “P-6640” inside the USDA mark of inspection. The products were shipped to hotel, restaurant, and institutional locations nationwide. A complete list of affected products can be found on the FSIS website.

A supplier notified Kabob’s that the flour sold to the company was part of a recall by General Mills, which was linked to a multi-state illness outbreak of E. coli O121. There have been no confirmed illnesses related to Kabob’s products, FSIS noted.

The Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 42 individuals from 21 states have been infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O121. Eleven of those case-patients have been hospitalized. A traceback investigation by the US Food and Drug Administration linked the outbreak to raw dough eaten or handled by case-patients or used in restaurant locations. FDA concluded that the raw dough was made using General Mills flour that was produced at a facility in Kansas City, Missouri.

FSIS said many clinical laboratories do not test for E. coli O121 because it is harder to identify than E. coli O157. Illness onset occurs on average three to four days after consuming food adulterated with the pathogen. Symptoms of E. coli O121 infection include diarrhea (often bloody), and vomiting. Some illnesses can last a week, while others can last longer and can be more severe, although hemolytic uremic syndrome is uncommon with STEC O121 infection, FSIS said.