LOS ANGELES, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- A hamburger packing plant in Los Angeles has recalled 153,630 pounds of raw beef after as many as 70 people in Virginia have come down with food poisoning, the Pasadena Star-News reported on Saturday.

    The recalled beef was suspected of being contaminated by E. coli bacteria which might originate from the S & S Foods company, the paper said.

    Until the exact source was pinned down, the packing plant was voluntarily recalling the ground meat, said the paper.

    But Virginia health officials have identified the beef as tainted, and said at least 26 Boy Scouts from the Washington D.C. area have been hospitalized.

    The meet has not been sold to retail shoppers, but was only wholesaled to institutional customers from some distribution centers in the nation, according to the paper.

    "We are recalling the product from distribution channels until we can determine whether illnesses in Virginia are connected to our operations or have some other original source or cause," said Jeff Grohs, a vice president at S & S Foods, in an e-mail to the Pasadena Star-News.

    Virginia health officials said dozens of Boy Scouts have come down with strain 0157:H7 of E. coli bacterial infections. One scout remained hospitalized, and 26 others have needed medical care, some in hospitals.

    None of the affected ground beef was sold in California, the company said.