Taco Bell beef recalled for having metal shavings

It’s a Taco Tuesday travesty.

Taco Bell announced today that 2.3 million pounds of its seasoned beef products were recalled last week because of possible contamination with metal shavings.

“Nothing is more important than our customers’ safety, and nothing means more to us than their trust,” Julie Masino, Taco Bell president, said in a news release. “As soon as we received the first consumer complaint, we immediately acted to remove the product from the affected restaurants and proactively worked with the supplier to inform the USDA of our steps to protect our guests.”

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the beef was produced in Ohio by Kenosha Beef International between Sept. 20 and Oct. 4. The seasoned meat filling is used for much of Taco Bell’s menu and is the standard filling for its tacos and burritos.

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said it hasn’t received reports of adverse reactions to contaminated meat but is concerned some of the packages, which were shipped nationwide, could contain contaminated product.

Taco Bell said it worked with Kenosha to locate and dispose of any contaminated product. The company said the beef was removed from restaurants in 21 states and completely disposed of by Monday.

According to Taco Bell, the problem was discovered when a customer found metal shavings in a menu item. The USDA said it had received three complaints about contaminated food.

The beef was produced in one of two plants that make the chain’s meat, then shipped to distribution centers in five states before being dispersed nationwide.

Once the problem was discovered, Taco Bell said the company shut down the entire supply chain.