Pink Slime - What's the big deal?

[FoolKiller]

A news corporation getting sued 👍.

I don't care what's in my food as long as the food tastes good and doesn't make me sick. The reason all of these additives are in food in the first place is pretty much those two reasons.

I will say that beef bought at my local farmer's market tastes better than grocery beef, but that has many reasons other than just pink slime.

 

[TenEightyOne]

I will say that beef bought at my local farmer's market tastes better than grocery beef, but that has many reasons other than just pink slime.

To do with freshness, often. I but meat from a supermarket but only if its butchered in front of me. They have packs in fridges but other than meat for casseroles I don't bother with it.

I'm still astonished by what McD are allowed to put in the food in their home country. In the UK it's genuinely just beef and seasoning (I've seen it made in Sunny Scunny), it seems that in the US it's much more of a mix of chemo-sludges.

 

[squadops]

Perhaps we should look closer into the USDA rather than blindly attacking mickey D.

http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food...re_made_of/your_questions_answered/meats.html

 

[TenEightyOne]

Perhaps we should look closer into the USDA rather than blindly attacking mickey D.

http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food...re_made_of/your_questions_answered/meats.html

I didn't realise they'd ceased use of ammonic beef for US customers. But they have, you're right. You'll note that the process was never used in the UK or Ireland.

Also note that pink slime isn't necessarily an ingredient; it's a process. McD were able to say they used 100% beef without referring to the ammonic part of the process. Because it's not an ingredient.

 

[squadops]

If it's not an ingredient then it's not in the burger.

 

[TenEightyOne]

If it's not an ingredient then it's not in the burger.

Thank you Professor Liebstraum. I think I actually said that to you though

The point is the difference between what you think of as "beef". As you can see McDs in the US have now stopped putting it through the process. That process makes a slimy kind of beef that can still be called 100% beef. Do you see where the trick is yet?

It's just a way to process in ingredient into almost something else while keeping the original descriptor.

 

[squadops]

Of course I see the trick, can you read? I said "check the usda"

Does not mater to me one way or the other, I don't eat craptastic fast food, I shoot deer and such. I'm also smart enough to make my own decisions, no one is forcing anyone to eat pink slime.

 

[Chrunch Houston]

More burgers on the dollar menus! And cheaper frozen burritos in the frozen food section!

 

[TenEightyOne]

Does not mater to me one way or the other, I don't eat craptastic fast food, I shoot deer and such. I'm also smart enough to make my own decisions, no one is forcing anyone to eat pink slime.

Damn, sounds good

If everybody could elect to eat as they wished all the time it wouldn't be a problem; I think the issue as that foods of the type that contain the most industrialised ingredients are those which are pushed out at the bottom of the food chain, no imagery intended.

The people with the least choice (and on average the least educational success) are the prime beneficiaries of these food types. Not exclusively of course, but mostly. Allowing companies to pump chemicals into the food chain at that level is bad for health in a cohort whose health is already at risk from other social factors.

Let me ask you something; if you saw me standing at a butcher's counter ordering some delicious minced steak but you saw the butcher sneak a bag of meat-mulch into my carrier instead, would you think he was ripping me off? Because when a company shows a photograph of a burger ready to eat with the words "100% beef" because they technically don't have to mention that the burger meat was ammonised and mulched... aren't they doing the same thing but with government blessing?


*For some reason the words "succulent chinese meal" popped into my head...

 

[Robin]

I'm pretty sure fresh lean beef minced produced and bought UK supermarkets is 100 percent beef without any of that recovered stuff or pink slime. I wonder how long it will be before we have this issue. The news has never mentioned this over here.

Unfortunately the cost of producing meat is going through the roof and experts predict a future where the majority of the population will have to eat insects as they are high in protein and can be produced with very little space, feed or time. Already many developing nations eat like this.

 

[TenEightyOne]

I'm pretty sure fresh lean beef minced produced and bought UK supermarkets is 100 percent beef without any of that recovered stuff or pink slime. I wonder how long it will be before we have this issue. The news has never mentioned this over here.

In this case the problem seems to be that it wasn't visible; McDs used it in their US burgers (not in the UK or Ireland) and didn't have to declare as an ingredient because it was just a process their 100% beef went through. Quite a dramatic, gooey process. They were free to sell the burgers as 100% beef.

Insects, yes, the long-term future of people is not as mainstream carnivores But ew.

 

[niky]

Considering that Americans wolf down hotdogs and spam like crazy, I still don't see what the problem is.

We already "process" cuts and pieces that used to be less desirable or profitable into ground beef and pork... and then trimmings and other stuff into sausages and hotdogs.

The "pink slime" process is merely a way to recover even more meat. As long as the finished product is safe (well, as safe as it can be when mixed with regular beef that carries the danger of E.Coli, mad cow, and other such wonderfully natural diseases and pathogens...) who cares?

This is speaking as one who eats duck embryos, animal entrails and sometimes crickets and beetles as part of his diet.

My diet doesn't contain enough roast beetle, though. That's lovely stuff to have with beer.

 

[Beeblebrox237]

Hot dogs are vile. I hate them. I don't care about pink slime and such, but I avoid buying any because overly processed meat tastes disgusting. McDonald's is horrible, as are most other low-end fast food chains.

 

[TexRex]

If I can't make an educated guess as to what "that" (any particular part, really) is in something being represented as meat, I won't eat it. My folks were hippies and taught me to use my eyes before my teeth. It's been nearly a decade since my last ground beef product--because of negatives regarding overall health, not because of any particular incident--and nearly a month since my last red meat. It's grilled turkey and salmon for me lately, no McD's.

 

[The Bman]

Processed foods taste like crap. I try to convince my family to buy fresh, local meats, but they'd rather buy food that's frozen and processed because it's cheaper. What, you can't pay a couple extra dollars for something of superior quality, that doesn't have dog food in it?

 

[squadops]

@TenEightyOne

Of course, oh those pesky people who also spend their entire paycheck eeergh, entire welfare check within a few days of receipt. Always getting the short end of the stick but never willing to better themselves.

I strongly believe however, people deserve to know what is in what they are buying, I've never understood the FDA's seemingly backwards thought on that.

As long as there is a market for crap, other people will willingly buy it also(along for the ride), I don't like it but it's fact. The peoples get what they want.

EDIT: for clarity and also for this cool vid

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[FoolKiller]

I'm pretty sure fresh lean beef minced produced and bought UK supermarkets is 100 percent beef without any of that recovered stuff or pink slime. I wonder how long it will be before we have this issue. The news has never mentioned this over here.

Unfortunately the cost of producing meat is going through the roof and experts predict a future where the majority of the population will have to eat insects as they are high in protein and can be produced with very little space, feed or time. Already many developing nations eat like this.

I have heard (no confirming links, so don't take as fact) that it was banned in Europe. That is possible. Both sides of the pond seem to ban and allow different things, and the whiney people always point to the other as an example. If it does good: "They already do it over there." If it does bad: "They already banned it over there."

With pink slime I wonder how much mad cow played a factor. We never got it here, so it never had much effect on food regulations.

In this case the problem seems to be that it wasn't visible;

This. I support labeling as the maximum regulation. Let the market sort out the rest.

Insects, yes, the long-term future of people is not as mainstream carnivores But ew.

Squid. Highly sustainable, insanely high in Omega 3, crazy low in fat, and a good source of protein. Also, very little waste byproduct, as there is only guts, beak, and a "spine" that are inedible. I'm sure the guts could be repurposed for animal food or just bait. It wouldn't take long to find a use for the chitin in the spine and beak.

 

[Robin]

I have heard (no confirming links, so don't take as fact) that it was banned in Europe. That is possible. Both sides of the pond seem to ban and allow different things, and the whiney people always point to the other as an example. If it does good: "They already do it over there." If it does bad: "They already banned it over there."

With pink slime I wonder how much mad cow played a factor. We never got it here, so it never had much effect on food regulations.

It might have played a factor, after BSE they were very worried about any meat on bone produce which obviously would be where the pink slime would be derived from.

Or it might be that the production systems here are not advanced enough to carry out such a meat recovery process. Sometimes not being at the cutting edge of food processing technology it a good thing. All you should need is a hook and a knife!

 

[Keef]

Considering that Americans wolf down hotdogs and spam like crazy, I still don't see what the problem is.

Hot dogs are made out of various things. You've got your cheap with meat blends and the better ones are all beef, turkey, chicken, etc. They're not any weirder than any other sausage which is just ground meat stuffed in a skin tube.

Also, only Hawaii eats Spam often. The rest of us think it's garbage. Why they bother selling it I have no idea.

 

[Robin]

McDonald's in the face of dipping sales has allowed filming in one of it's US processing factories to dispel myths about the food including pink slime which they did admit to using for 7 years!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-burgers-not-rot-deny-makes-frankenfoods.html

The meat still looks pretty grey to me... and they use the cheapest bits like skin, fat etc...

 

[FoolKiller]

McDonald's in the face of dipping sales has allowed filming in one of it's US processing factories to dispel myths about the food including pink slime which they did admit to using for 7 years!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-burgers-not-rot-deny-makes-frankenfoods.html

The meat still looks pretty grey to me... and they use the cheapest bits like skin, fat etc...

They quit using pink slime after the complaints. If you watch the video you can see that it is the cheaper, fattier cuts of meat used to make plain 80/20 ground beef available anywhere.

And OH GOD NO!!!!!! They use skin in their chicken nuggets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Why on Earth would anyone eat chicken skin or include it in any recipes? It is just to be used for fried chicken, broth, wings, and various other forms of cooking in order to add some unhealthy flavor. Never nuggets though!

It is so odd to have worked in a food job and now do a lot of cooking myself to see people get worked up about this stuff. It's like watching people freak out when they realize that fish pee and poop in the water of a river they go kayaking in. I buy as large of a chunk of beef as possible and make my own cuts. When I buy chicken the only thing not attached are feathers, head and claws. I quarter it up, freeze the individual pieces (with skin on), and then put all the scraps (including, spine neck and organs) in the freezer for broth. And when I make broth the marrow of the bones is so drained that the bones just crumble apart in my hands as I pull the excess meat trimmings off. Since I can't store a full side of beef I just get the beef trimmings and bones off the butcher. I might pay $1 a pound, if not free to take the scraps off his hands. If I want to make sausage I can ask them for chunks of fat to grind with my venison.

Take an animal all the way from birth to the dinner plate and none of this will phase you. We attack McDonald's because...corporate prejudice and bigotry? The fact is, we have become lazy and complacent and no longer know where our food comes from. When we catch a glimpse we react like scared villagers seeing Frankenstein's monster.


EDIT: And BTW, beef is red due to oxygen coming into contact with myoglobin. It has nothing to do with blood. When freshly ground, the interior of beef may be grey due to oxygen not reaching the myoglobin. Also, over time the myoglobin changes states, causing it to lose its red color. Some meat processers will use carbon monoxide to maintain a healthy pink color beyond freshness.