Metal shots or BBs were found inside Thousand Hills Local Farms beef products at the Lakewinds Food Co-op in Richfield, prompting a recall.

The recall was issued Wednesday "out of an abundance of caution" by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture after staff at the co-op and a customer identified contamination.

It is unknown how the contamination occurred, the Department of Agriculture said in a statement. Matt Maier, the owner of Thousand Hills, said in a prepared statement that "it seems as though an unscrupulous actor may have targeted one of our grazing animals with some birdshot that got embedded beneath the hide. We apologize for any convenience this may cause, but we wanted to proceed with an abundance of caution."

The recall is only in effect for products produced by Thousand Hills and sold at the Lakewinds Food Co-op in Richfield. The products include bottom round roasts, stew meat, top round steaks and roasts, stir fry meat, sirloin tip steaks and roasts, eye of round steaks and roasts and ground beef.

Anyone with the products in their home should either throw them out or return them for a refund, the Department of Agriculture said.

Anyone with questions can contact the co-op directly by calling 952-512-2199 or emailing lakewinds@lakewinds.com.