The U.S. Agriculture Department said a food company was voluntarily recalling frozen ground beef that had been linked to 27 confirmed cases of E. coli. S&S Foods of Azusa, Calif., said it is recalling 153,630 pounds of beef that may be contaminated with E. coli 0157:H7 that were shipped to distribution centers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Allentown, Pennsylvania.

The Virginia Department of Health linked the strain to the cases of E.coli at the Goshen Scout Reservation, a Boy Scout camp in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Seventy scouts and staff reported symptoms that matched E coli contamination and one camper remains hospitalized. E. coli O157:H7 can cause diarrhea and dehydration and children, elderly and people with weak immune systems are the most susceptible.

The Virginia Public Health officials tested and confirmed the outbreak was linked to the beef.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture said the Virginia outbreak, which occurred in the later part of July, is the only one linked to the beef.

The beef in question was packaged at S&S's Azusa plant and sold throughout the U.S. to institutional customers. Jeff Grohs, vice president of business development for S&S, said in an e-mail the company is trying to confirm if the "illnesses in Virginia are connected to our operations or have some other original source or cause."

The USDA’s food safety agency said it’s investigating how the meat got contaminated and called the recall a “Class I”. This means the E. coli strain poses a "health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death."

The products subject to recall are 30-pound boxes of "742798 MFST, 100% GROUND BEEF BULK, 80/20, 1LB. BRICK." The label carries the establishment number "EST. 20375" inside the USDA mark of inspection and has an ink jet printed case code on the side of the box beginning with “06238”.