WASHINGTON – Whole Foods Market is recalling fresh ground beef sold in several states, including Maine, from June 2 through Aug. 6 because the beef might be contaminated with E. coli bacteria.

The company has received reports that seven people in Massachusetts and two people in Pennsylvania who shopped at Whole Foods Market became ill, said spokeswoman Libba Letton.

Massachusetts health officials said Friday three females and four females who got sick all ate ground beef purchased from Whole Foods Markets in July. Five of the seven people required hospitalization.

Letton said the company’s recalled beef was processed at the Nebraska Beef plant linked to the E. coli outbreak this summer. Federal health authorities say 49 confirmed illnesses have been tied to that outbreak.

The recalled beef might have been sold at Whole Foods Market stores in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine, Massachusetts, Florida, New Jersey, New York, Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington D.C., Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Wisconsin and Canada.

Whole Foods Market of Austin, Texas, is asking customers who may have purchased ground beef from June 2 through Aug. 6 to dispose of the product and return it to the store with the packaging or receipt for a refund. For more information, consumers can call 512-542-0878.