Don't eat 'cannibal sandwiches,' Wisconsin health officials remind residents

(WFRV) — As the holidays approach, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is again reminding residents to avoid eating cannibal sandwiches, a tradition involving raw ground beef, which poses significant health risks.

"While we know some people in Wisconsin consider tiger meat or cannibal sandwiches to be a holiday tradition, it's a DHS tradition to warn you each year that eating raw meat is never a good idea," DHS officials shared on social media.

Regardless of its source, raw and undercooked beef can harbor bacteria like salmonella, E. coli O157:H7, campylobacter, and listeria, all of which can cause serious illness.

Since 1986, Wisconsin has seen eight outbreaks linked to raw ground beef, including one in December 1994 that affected over 150 people. DHS stresses ground beef should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F to ensure safety.

Despite its repulsive name, the cannibal sandwich has a long history in Wisconsin. Featuring raw beef on rye bread with slices of onion and salt and pepper, it is believed to be rooted in a German dish known as meet or hackepeter, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal.

Around the holidays, delis and butcher shops in and around Milwaukee are known to sell thousands of pounds of raw beef — whether or not that beef becomes a cannibal sandwich is unknown.

Regular ground beef you find at a grocery store isn't recommended when making a cannibal sandwich. Instead, as WPR explains, ground-up steak (or similar cuts of beef) is preferred as it carries a lower E. coli risk.

If the thought of eating a raw beef sandwich is too much to stomach, you may want to avoid other traditional delicacies in Wisconsin, like pickled herring and liver sausage.