Two deaths have been linked to the recall of 545,699 pounds of fresh ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. The beef was produced by Fairbank Farms in western New York, which recalled the meat on Saturday.

The meat was packaged between September 14 and 16 and may have been labeled with a sell-by date from Sept. 19 through Sept. 28. Because those dates have passed, the meat is no longer on store shelves but health officials fear it may still be in people's freezers. The meat was distributed to retailers in eight states -- Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia -- but Fairbank Farms said on its Web site that some of its customers may have redistributed ground beef to other states.  The stores receiving the meat include ACME, BJ's, Ford Brothers, Giant Food Stores, Price Chopper, Shaw's, and Trader Joe's, Lancaster and Wild Harvest. Each package bears the establishment number "EST. 492" inside the USDA mark of inspection or on the nutrition label.

The Associated Press reported that one of the deaths was an adult from Albany County, N.Y., who had several underlying health conditions, according to the New York State Health Department. The other fatality was reported by New Hampshire, where health officials said a patient died of complications.

For complete details on the recall including the weight and labels of the recalled packages of meat, read the recall notice from the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service. Consumers can contact the Fairbank Farms’ toll-free hotline at 1-877-546-0122.