Topps Meat Company LLC has announced on Saturday it expanded its ground beef meat recall from 331,582 pounds of suspected meat to 21.7 million pounds, under fears of contamination with E. coli bacteria. The ground beef was sold as frozen hamburger patties of different types.

The recalled meat has a "sell by date" or "best if used by date" between September 25, 2007, and September 25, 2008. Also, the packages can be recognized by their U.S. Department of Agriculture establishment number, which is EST 9748 as printed on the back panel of the package and/or in the USDA legend.

The company believes that most of the recalled meat has already been consumed by customers. The recall was triggered by an alleged number of 25 cases of illness caused by suspected E. coli bacteria in eight states, including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

Elizabeth, New Jersey-based Topps Meat Company LLC is at its first recall in its 67-year history. The expansion of the recall from the initial 331,000 pounds was made after another sample of meat was found contaminated with the E. coli O157:H7 strain and after alleged illnesses across the U.S.

Almost two dozen people may be ill because they consumed bacteria-tainted Topps frozen burgers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Wednesday. There have been illnesses reported in Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania, according to the CDC and the USDA.

Lola Russell, a CDC representative, said two cases in New York and one in Florida are confirmed as being linked to the ground beef, while another 18 cases are still under investigation and could also be linked to Topps products, the Associated Press reported.

The recall, which covers 21 products that were distributed nationwide, includes certain 10-pound boxes of Butcher's Best 100% All Beef Patties; certain 10-pound boxes of Kohler Foods burgers; certain 10-pound boxes of Sand Castle Fine Meat; some 2-pound boxes of Topps 100% Pure Ground Beef Hamburgers; and some 3-pound boxes of Topps 100% Pure Ground Beef Hamburgers.

(Read the complete list of the recalled products at http://www.toppsmeat.com/)

Topps representative Cortney McMahon has stated that the meat producer is fully cooperating with federal health officials, while Geoffrey Livermore, the company's operations vice president, confirmed that Topps "is concerned with the safety and welfare of all our customers and we are deeply concerned for those who became ill."