Major supplier of beef found to use Ammonia in it's products

[6souls]

The New York Times reports that one of the main suppliers of processed beef filler to fast food restaurants like McDonald's and Burger King -- not to mention school lunch and grocery store meat -- had been using ammonia as a means of killing E. coli O157:H7 and salmonella.

Yes. Ammonia.

Years ago, the supplier, Beef Products Inc., figured out a way to process and treat the inedible bits from the carcass -- bits that "typically include most of the material from the outer surfaces of the carcass," the article reports. The processed filler, when mixed into ground beef, is intended to reduce the cost of beef and thus boost profit margins.

However, a considerable amount of dangerous bacteria like salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 is present in the "outer surfaces" such as the skin itself. So Beef Products began to blast its filler product with ammonia to kill the bacteria. Ammonia.

And they're still doing it.

The only problem was that it tasted terrible, so they apparently began to use less ammonia.

Meanwhile the USDA exempted Beef Products filler from inspection, since the ammonia would do the trick. Do you see where this is headed?

Less ammonia but the same amount of filler means increased traces of pathogens in beef samples -- a result that was confirmed by school lunch officials and the New York Times. In other words, too much ammonia and pH levels are too high and the filler is inedible. Not enough and it doesn't kill the pathogens. But either way, the beef still deliberately contains ammonia.

Again, this is beef filler that's used in school lunches and the most popular fast food chains in America. As recently as 2004, school lunch beef contained as much as 15% of this ammonia-treated filler as a means of saving a whole three cents per pound.

On several occasions, school lunch officials have suspended the use of Beef Products filler. But only temporarily due to bacteria contamination and not because of ammonia, pH or alkalinity levels. Meanwhile, fast food and grocery store beef continues to contain Beef Products' ammonia-doused processed whatever.

You won't find ammonia listed on any labels, by the way, so don't bother looking. Long ago, the government acquiesced to Beef Products' request that the ammonia treatment be categorized as a "processing agent" so it doesn't appear on any consumer labeling.

http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/0...d-the-ammonia/

[Headspace]

feels good man

[Kiro]

In your face you red meat eating cock goblins! HAHAHAHAHA.

[Pikarya]

Delicious

[Qalbert]

Beef Products is a horribly unoriginal name.

[wipers]

Vegetarian since 2008. And no I'm not a member of PETA.

[_chuchu]

I guess if the curtains have ammonia, I'll have to use other entry methods

[Heavencloud]

shits so cash

[Pirian]

Oh wait I don't eat fast food anyways

[Fievel]

Oh wait I don't eat fast food anyways

yay for us

[Meat]

Pescetarian and proud!!!

[6souls]

Oh wait I don't eat fast food anyways

or buy meat from the grocery store etc etc.

[Faris]

lolamerican food products

lolfast food

and large food companies selling us food that contain some crazy shit in it to boost their profit margins is really old news. havent you watched food, inc.? damn.

ATTENTION: do not eat fast food, minimize your meat consumption and eat more organic, fresh non cooked food; and you might live a healthy life.

[Pirian]

or buy meat from the grocery store etc etc.

This is the only red meat I eat. Occasionally I'll buy from the store but even then I get top grade and as lean as they have.

[Khamsin]

I don't get the point of the article. So they use ammonia. Ammonia.

But... unless there's some e.coli epidemics going on, or ammonia-related deaths going on, that I don't know about, I don't see the problem.

It seems like something meant to make you think about what you're eating than anything else. I haven't died yet, so I'll keep on enjoying my ammoniaburgers, tyvm.

[Headspace]

elitists.

[Cyn]

Doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.

I am the future.

[Pirian]

lolamerican food products

lolfast food

and large food companies selling us food that contain some crazy shit in it to boost their profit margins is really old news. havent you watched food, inc.? damn.

ATTENTION: do not eat fast food, minimize your meat consumption and eat more organic, fresh non cooked food; and you might live a healthy life.

As sad as it is this really isn't new. But at least we can say that it isn't even 1/99th as bad as it was then. Really though, the fact that we have to even worry about shit like this happening to our food is beyond disbelief.

[miokomioko]

This article has taught me only that ammonia doesn't really taste so bad.

[Cyn]

This article has taught me only that ammonia doesn't really taste so bad.

Mix it with bleach. Shit gets real then.