Monday, April 9, 2012

"Pink Slime" in Hamburger, what about Chicken???



This is mechanically separated chicken, an invention of the late 20th century. This particular paste, chicken -- is the main ingredient in chicken nuggets, chicken hot dogs, chicken bologna, and an ingredient in things like pepperoni, salami, jerky etc, etc. Mechanically separated chicken is also treated with ammonia for sterilization purposes, just as is Pink Slime. If you see the words 'finely textured' before the name of the meat, this is what you are eating...

Someone figured out in the 1960′s that meat processors can eke out a few more percent of profit from chickens, turkeys, pigs, and cows by scraping the bones 100% clean of meat. This is done by machines, not humans, by passing bones leftover after the initial cutting through a high pressure sieve. The paste you see in the picture above is the result.

The industry calls this method AMR – Advanced Meat Recovery.

The definition of "meat" was amended in December 1994 to include any "meat" product that is produced by advanced meat/bone separation machinery. "This meat is comparable in appearance, texture, and composition to meat trimmings and similar meat products derived by hand." This machinery separates meat from bone by scraping, shaving, or pressing the meat from the bone without breaking or grinding the bone. Product produced by advanced meat recovery (AMR) machinery can be labeled using terms associated with hand-deboned product (e.g., "pork trimmings" and "ground pork").

Mechanically Separated Meat (MSM)
Mechanically separated meat is a paste-like and batter-like meat product produced by forcing bones, with attached edible meat, under high pressure through a sieve or similar device to separate the bone from the edible meat tissue.

Mechanically Separated Poultry (MSP)

Mechanically separated poultry is a paste-like and batter-like poultry product produced by forcing bones, with attached edible tissue, through a sieve or similar device under high pressure to separate bone from the edible tissue. Mechanically separated poultry has been used in poultry products since the late 1960's. In 1995, a final rule on mechanically separated poultry said it was safe and could be used without restrictions. However, it must be labeled as "mechanically separated chicken or turkey" in the product's ingredients statement. 

The final rule became effective November 4, 1996. Hot dogs can contain any amount of mechanically separated chicken or turkey.
Source

Are you really comfortable now with the meats the supermarkets are selling, or those in the fast food drive-throughs? Actually I do not blame them in general... they just buy a product they are told is edible (and aren't we all gullible?), and sell it to us. I blame the USDA and FSIS for allowing the corporate pressures and financial contributions of BigAg to determine what we eat.



10 comments:

  1. No, actually, I'm not comfortable with the meat sold in grocery stores or that sold in most restaurants, either (not just fast food, but also some of the "family-style" restaurants where Kraft Mac&Cheese is menu fare ?!? ... and they charge $2 for it !?!). It gets harder and harder for me to eat anything that I don't cook myself using ingredients that I've carefully sourced from local farmers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I find it harder and harder to eat anything I haven't carefully sourced and prepared myself either. Sure makes pot-lucks with friends awkward!

      Delete
  2. Our "Advanced Meat Recovery" is chasing after one of the chickens when they make a break for freedom. it involves some fast walking and "shoo! shoo!-ing" to get them back into the pen. ;-)

    the more food we "make" ourselves the less eating grocery store or restaurant food becomes. i used to love eating out - now it just gives me the creeps. forget about eating at someone else's house that eats the Standard American Diet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OFG, I like your "Advanced Meat Recovery" system, LOL!

      Delete
  3. Hello Chicken Mc Nuggets You Got To Love Them Golden Arches !! NOT
    If You Are Not Growing Your Own Food You Are Clueless About What Is In it.
    Our Food In this country is just garbage and the Washington cronies could care less
    About you or anyone eating the SHIT they call FOOD it is good for PROFITS for big business

    That is paying the law makers and making them rich
    Just look at taco bell they call it beef and it is only 35% BEEF what The Hell is the rest of it beaks, feet’s, and A__holes Lips and bung Pipes, guts, butts and chicken rumps Aka ( the Popes Nose) Yesterday old news or yesteryears old trees or ground up old shoes ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had known that about Taco Bell's beef, but had put it out of my mind because I don't eat fast food. Thanks for the reminder, because others may NOT know.

      I believe we cannot fight for changes if we don't know what's really going on, akin to The Art of War about knowing the enemy well if we seek defeat (in this case, defeat of fake foods).

      Delete
  4. I've always thought 'mechanically separated chicken' sounded like roadkill, it automatically called up a yuck factor, a thought that 'this can't be good'. And indeed it's not.

    Yep, it's getting to feel more & more like risk-taking adventure eating out or at those who still follow the SAD. So I moderate severely. But I've always lived dangerously & I'm not about to limit my community to only people who eat like I do.

    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wouldn't limit my community either to just those who eat and/or believe as I do, but I'd remain cautious about sharing a lot of meals with them if they still follow the SAD.

      Delete
  5. That's pretty much a non-issue here, as I don't share many meals anyhow. So what comes my way I rejoice in.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mechanically Separated Has A Meaning Of Stuff Most People Do Not EAT or things that are too small for human hands to remove from the bones. Mt wife went to the health food store and came home with a package of chicken dogs on the lable it said 'mechanically separated chicken so we cooked some up I took one bite and spit it out in the garbage along with the rest of them and I've been making my own sausages since and it tastes like good Food if any one would like the recipes ask Darius she knows how to get a hold of me and i will pass them on to her
    Thank For listen To my Rants Of junk Food
    Stan

    ReplyDelete

I'd love to hear what you think about my posts! We all learn together.