STERLING HEIGHTS – The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development have announced a recall on 500 pounds of ground beef from meat store Jouni Meats, located in Sterling Heights. Meat sold at the store has been identified as a possible source of contamination of Salmonella Typhimurium, but it is not clear if the contamination occurred at the store, said the department.

Inspectors say all the cases tracked back to meat sold at Jouni’s between Dec. 4 and Dec. 9. A total of nine people, including six who ate Kibbeh, reported being sick . The source of the contamination has not been identified, as there could be a possibility that it occurred at a restaurant that it was sold to. 

Salmonella infections can be life-threatening, especially to infants, elderly people and those with weakened immune systems. The most common symptoms are diarrhea, abdominal cramps and fever, and chills, headache, nausea and vomiting that can last up to seven days.  More than 900 cases of salmonella have been reported in Michigan for each of the past five years, except in 2011, when the number had decreased to 855 cases, according to the Michigan Department of Community Health. 

The owner of Jouni Meats, Khalil Jouni says he constantly keeps his meat shop clean each day with soap, water and bleach. Jouni initiated the recall himself after he had learned that a possible contamination had occurred.