Safeway Inc.'s Northern California Division is recalling all ground beef products sold in its Northern California, Hawai'i and Nevada stores with sell-by dates from July 3 to July 15, 2002.

Seventeen people in Colorado already have gotten sick from beef provided by ConAgra Beef Co. of Greeley, Colo. At least six other cases of E. coli-caused illnesses have been reported in California, Michigan, South Dakota, Washington and Wyoming, but none of those cases have been linked yet to the ConAgra beef.

The Safeway recall includes 73% ground beef, 80% ground beef, 90% ground beef, 93% ground beef, and ground sirloin packaged in white or yellow foam trays. The chain has suspended its purchases of ground beef products from ConAgra.

"We want to make it clear that this recall does NOT apply to any of the ground beef currently available in our stores," said David Bowlby, Safeway Northern California public affairs director. "We are providing this information to our customers out of an abundance of caution and asking them to check their freezers for any ground beef product."

Safeway will provide a refund to consumers who return the affected products or has proof of purchase.

Company officials and the Agriculture Department warned hamburger-loving Americans to be on the lookout for the affected meat, which has been on the market since April and could have been sold under several brand names. The labels on all the recalled products bear the code "EST. 969" inside the USDA seal of inspection; the complete list of recalled products is on the Web site of USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service.

The beef should be returned to the place of purchase. Consumers of ground beef should always cook it to 160 degrees in the center to kill E. coli, health officials say.

Late last month, ConAgra recalled 354,000 pounds of fresh and frozen ground beef products because of E. coli concerns, and insisted only that batch had been linked definitely to the bacterium.

But ConAgra spokesman Jim Herlihy said Friday the company wanted to err on the side of caution.

"We want to be absolutely certain there's no opportunity that this product could be affected," Herlihy said. "We have no specific reason to believe it is, we're just taking extra precaution so consumers don't have any concerns about the product they buy."

Added Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman: "This action is being taken as a cautionary measure to ensure the protection of public health."

Herlihy said ConAgra could not say exactly what brand names the meat has been sold under. "So many of our customers are wholesalers who distribute to customers of their own," he said. "We don't control that customer list."

Americans ate 69.5 pounds of beef per person in 2000, reflecting steady but modest increases since 1993, when consumption fell to 65.1 pounds, officials said.

The Agriculture Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that 16 people have been diagnosed with E. coli from the tainted meat in Colorado. The Colorado Health Department said a 17th person also fell ill from ConAgra meat. Federal and state agencies reported today that more infections are showing up that could be linked to contaminated ConAgra meat.

The 19 million pounds of meat were produced between April 12 and July 11, officials said.

ConAgra is cooperating with the Agriculture Department.

Veneman, asked if the department will cite the company for violations, said a government investigation at the plant is continuing.

No E. coli has been found at the Greeley plant since July 11, said Elsa Murano, the undersecretary for food safety.

The largest meat recall in U.S. history was in 1997, when Hudson Foods recalled 25 million pounds of ground beef after 15 people in Colorado fell ill from E. coli after eating hamburger from its plant in Columbus, Neb.

ConAgra's recall is of beef trim, which is used to make ground beef, as well as fresh and frozen ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.

E. coli is a bacterium found in the intestinal tracts and feces of livestock. If it contaminates meat, it can lead to digestive illnesses and potentially death in humans.

The stock of global conglomerate ConAgra Foods Inc., which owns ConAgra Beef Co., closed at $21.94, down $1.81 a share on the New York Stock Exchange.

Several groups blamed the Agriculture Department's testing program for the massive recall.

"The current testing program isn't adequate to prevent these major problems," said Josie Baoust, spokeswoman for the American Meat Institute. "This recall really shows a systematic breakdown where neither USDA or the plant recognized a problem for three months."

Tests taken June 12 and 14 at Galligan's Wholesale Meat Co. in Denver showed the meat was contaminated with E. coli. On June 24, follow-up tests determined the source was the ConAgra plant. But it wasn't until June 29 that ConAgra was told its meat was contaminated. The company recalled 354,200 pounds of ground beef the next day.

After the sicknesses began, federal inspectors decided to begin notifying meat processors immediately when they suspect beef may be contaminated.

Customers with questions can contact ConAgra’s consumer hotline at 1-888-742-0467.