" Slime pink " (degrading term for subtle, fine textured beef or LFTB , finely textured beef , and lean cuts of beef or BLBT ) are by-products of meat used as food additives for processed beef and beef meat, as fillers, or to reduce the overall fat content of beef. In the process of production, heat and centrifugal remove fat from meat in beef cuts. The resulting pasta is exposed to ammonia gas or citric acid to kill bacteria. In 2001, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved a product for limited human consumption. LFTB prepared using ammonia gas is prohibited for human consumption in the EU.
In March 2012, ABC News's series of "pink mucus" included claims that about 70% of beef sold in US supermarkets contained additives at the time. Some companies and organizations stop offering ground beef with the product. The "pink mucus" claimed by some originally been used as pet food and cooking oil and then approved for public consumption, but this was debated in April 2012, by both the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) responsible for approving the product. and Beef Products, Inc. (BPI), the largest additive producer in the US. In September 2012, BPI filed a defamation suit against American Broadcasting Corporation for false claims about the product. In 2017 BPI seeks $ 1.9 billion in damages. On June 28, 2017, ABC announced that it had settled the lawsuit. The settlement requirement is at least $ 177,000,000 (US). Counsel for BPI believes this to be the largest amount ever paid in case of media libel in the United States.
These products are arranged with different manners in different regions. In the US, this product is allowed for use in beef, and can be used in other meat products such as processed meat based beef. The use of ammonia as an anti-microbial agent is approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and is included in the FDA's list of GRAS procedures (generally recognized as safe), and is used in the same application for a variety of other food products, including puddings and baked goods. This product is banned in Canada due to the presence of ammonia in it, and it is prohibited for human consumption in the EU. Some consumer advocacy groups have promoted product removal or for mandatory additive disclosure in beef, while others expressed concerns about plant closures that occurred after the product received significant news media coverage.
Video Pink slime
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The finely textured meat is produced by heating bone boneless beef up to 107-109 ° F (42-43 Â ° C), removing liquid fat by centrifugal force using a centrifuge, and flashing the remaining product freezing up to 15 Â ° F ( - 9Ã, Â ° C) within 90 seconds in the freezer. The freezer roll is a freezer type found in 1971 by CEO of BPI Eldon Roth that can "freeze meat packets in two minutes" and start being used on Beef Products Inc. in 1981. Fine non-fat textured beef is added to grind the beef as a filler or to reduce the overall fat content of beef. As of March 2012, about 70% of beef sold in US supermarkets contained the product. The source area for livestock products may include the most contaminated parts, such as near hiding.
Recovered beef material is extruded through a thinner tube that is thinner than a pencil, during which time at the Beef Processing Plant, Inc. (BPI), the meat is exposed to ammonia gas. In Cargill Meat Solutions, citric acid is used to kill bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella . Ammonia gas contact with water in meat produces ammonium hydroxide. Ammonia sharply increases pH and damages microscopic organisms, freezing causes ice crystals to form and pierce weakened cell walls, and mechanical stress destroys organisms altogether. The product is finely ground, compressed into pellets or beams, frozen and then sent for use as an additive.
Most fine textured beef is produced and sold by BPI, Cargill and Tyson Foods. As of March 2012 there are no product labels, and only the USDA Organic label indicates that beef does not contain "pink mucus". Per BPI, the finished product is 94% to 97% nonfat beef (with 3% to 6% fat content) has a nutritional value comparable to 90% lean beef, very high in protein, low in fat, and contains iron vitamins, zinc, and B. US beef containing up to 15% of the product can be labeled as "ground beef". Until 2005, filler can reach 25% ground meat. In the Associated Press review, food editor and cookbook writer J.M. Hirsh compares the taste of two burgers: that should contain LFTB and a traditional hamburger. He described a burger containing LFTB having the same odor, but it was less watery and lacked a lot of flavor.
In 2002, a microbiologist from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) stated that the product contained connective tissue and that he did not consider it ground meat and it was "not equivalent to nutrition" for ground beef. Rick Jochum, a BPI spokeswoman, stated in 2012 that BPI products do not contain cattle intestines or connective tissue such as tendons.
Maps Pink slime
Initial use
In 1990, the USDA's Food Security and Inspection Service (FSIS) approved the use of technology to produce finely textured meat. At the time of its approval, the FSIS referred to the remaining "meat" product, although one FSIS microbiologist disagrees, arguing that it contains both muscle and connective tissue.
In 1994, in response to public health problems of pathogenic E. coli in beef, BPI founder Eldon Roth began working on a "pH Increase System", which disinfected meat using ammonia anhydride injected in gas form, fast freezing up to 28 Â ° F (-2 Â ° C), and mechanical pressure.
In 2001, FSIS approved the gas disinfection system as a follow-up step before roller press freezer, and approved the product disinfected for human consumption, as an additive. The FSIS agrees with the BPI's suggestion that ammonia is a "processing agent" that does not need to be listed on the label as material. FSIS microbiologists Carl Custer and Gerald Zirnstein claimed that they opposed product approval for human consumption, saying it was not "meat" but actually "rescue", and that the USDA should seek independent verification of its security, but they were rejected. In 2003, BPI commissioned research on the effectiveness and safety of the disinfection process; The Iowa State University researchers did not find any safety issues in the product or beef that contained it.
The term "pink mucus", a reference to "typical display" of products, was created in 2002 by Zirnstein in internal FSIS e-mail. Expressing the concern that ammonia should be mentioned on the packaged milled label that the processed pieces added, Zirnstein stated "I do not think of it as ground beef, and I am considering allowing it in ground meat to become a form of deception, labeling". He then states that his main concern is that the connective tissue is not "meat", and the ground meat in which the product has been added should not be called ground meat, as it is not nutritious equivalent to ordinary beef.
In 2007, the USDA determined a very effective disinfection process that would be exempt from "routine meat testing used in hamburger sales to the general public".
A December 2009 investigation piece published by The New York Times questions the safety of meat treated by this process, pointing to an occasion where process adjustment is ineffective. This article includes the first public use of the term "pink mucus" as being patronizing. In January 2010, The New York Times published an editorial that repeated the concerns raised in news articles while noting that no meat produced by BPI has been linked to disease or outbreaks.
An episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution that aired on April 12, 2011, depicts Jamie Oliver denouncing the use of "pink mucus" in food supplies and school lunches. In the episode, Oliver delivers cuts of beef in ammonia fluids while explaining what the product is and why he is disgusted with the product. Oliver stated, "Everyone who is told about 'pink mucus' does not like their food - schoolchildren, soldiers, senior citizens all hate him." The introduction of additives into the nation's meat supply raises concerns and is criticized by some scientists. Scientists say they have used the term 'pink mucus' to describe the product, which they say should have been identified as an additive and is believed to be not really a beef as it is commonly defined. " American Meat Institute and Beef Products Inc. reply with a YouTube video featuring Dr. Gary Acuff from Texas A & amp; M University who questioned some of Oliver's statements and promoted the additive.
ABC News report
A series of 11-segment reports in March 2012 from ABC News brought widespread public attention and increased consumer concerns about the product. This product is described as "meat cuts basically compressed together and treated with antibacterial agents". The finely textured beef (LFTB) is referred to as "an unattractive example of industrial food production". This product is characterized as "unattractive, but perhaps no more than anything else that is routinely a part of hamburgers" by Sarah Klein, a lawyer for the food safety program at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Nutritionist Andy Bellatti called this product "one of the many symptoms of a faulty food system". Food policy writer Tom Laskawy notes that ammonium hydroxide is just one of several chemicals routinely added to industrial-produced meats in the United States.
It was reported at the time that 70% of beef sold in US supermarkets contained additives, and that the USDA considered it meat. The USDA issued a statement that LFTB is safe and has been included in consumer products for some time, and Deputy Minister of Agriculture for Food Safety Elisabeth A. Hagen stated that "The process used to produce LFTB is safe and has been used for a very long time and adds LFTB to ground beef does not make the ground meat less safe for consumption ".
Industry response
Manufacturer of Beef Products Inc. (BPI) and the meat industry organizations deal with public issues by stating that additives, though processed, are "non-fat beef" that can not be reclaimed through traditional slaughterhouse practices until newer technologies were available about 20 years ago.. With regard to concerns over the use of ammonium hydroxide, BPI notes that its use as an anti-microbial agent is approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The use of ammonium hydroxide is included in the FDA's list of GRAS procedures (generally recognized as safe), and is used in the same application for a variety of other food products, including puddings and baked goods.
Market response
Some US food producers openly declare that they do not use the product in their merchandise, including ConAgra Foods Inc., Sara Lee Corporation and Kraft Foods Inc. Many meat retailers claim that they do not use the product, or will stop using it.
Many fast food chains stop using the product once controversy arises, or declare that they have never used a product before. In April 2012 Concord Monitor reported business improvements in some small environmental markets where product use was less likely, due to consumer concerns about additives.
On March 25, 2012, BPI announced it will halt operations in three of its four factories, is in "crisis planning". All three plants produce a total of about 900,000 pounds of products per day. BPI said it lost contracts with 72 customers, many over a weekend, and production declined from 5 million pounds LFTB per week to under one million pounds a week at its lowest point (low point of production). Effective 25 May 2012 BPI closed three of its four factories, including one in Garden City, Kansas, lost more than $ 400 million in sales, and laid off 700 workers. Production declined to less than 2 million pounds by 2013. Cargill also significantly reduced fine-textured beef production and in April 2012 "warned that community resilience against fillers could lead to higher hamburger prices during this barbecue season". About 80% of product sales evaporate "overnight" in 2012, per president Cargill Beef. Cargill stopped production in Vernon, California, and laid off about 50 workers and slowed production at other plants including a beef processing plant in Plainview, Texas, where about 2,000 people were laid off.
Many grocery stores and supermarkets, including the three largest chains in the country, announced in March 2012 that they will no longer sell products containing additives. Several wholesale companies, restaurants, and school districts stopped the sale and supply of additive beef after media reports.
In April 2012, the USDA received requests from beef processors to allow voluntary product labeling with additives, and stated that they plan to approve labeling after checking the accuracy of the label. Both BPI and Cargill make plans to label products containing additives to reduce these concerns and restore consumer confidence. Following the USDA announcement to allow choice in purchasing decisions for beef, many school districts state that they will opt out of serving ground meat with LFTB. As of June 2012, 47 of the 50 US states refused to purchase any product for the 2012-2013 school year while the South Dakota Education Department, Nebraska, and Iowa chose to continue to buy it.
On April 2, 2012, AFA Foods, a fine-textured beef processor beef producer owned by the Yucaipa Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy by saying "ongoing media attention" that has "dramatically reduced the demand for all ground beef products". On April 3, 2012, the US cattle futures contract on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange was at 3.5-month lows, partly due to the "pink mucus" controversy. The cattle trader stated that: "It has made a spike in demand.This is bullish for live cattle in the long run, but the short run is definitely negative".
Government response
After suspension of operations in three of BPI's four factories, media members and leaders were invited by Iowa Governor Terry Branstad for a tour of BPI facilities that remain open in South Sioux City, Nebraska. The founders of BPI contributed the campaign to Branstad in 2010, and to other candidate's campaigns. Branstad told ABC News that his contribution was not a factor in his decision regarding having the event. Texas Governor Rick Perry, Nebraska Lieutenant Governor Rick Sheehy, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, and South Dakota Governor Matt Michels toured the South Sioux City plant in Nebraska in an effort to remove the "inaccurate information" they claimed caused " unnecessary panic among consumers ". The publicity tour came up with a promotional slogan, "Dude, this is beef!" News reporters are not allowed to ask employees at BPI any questions during the tour. The BPI affirmed that social media and ABC News "misunderstood" their product. BPI eventually sued ABC News for defamation. On March 28, 2012, Branstad stated, "The problem is, we take this from the market, then we end up with a fatter product that will be more expensive and it will increase the obesity problem in this country". Safeway and other retailers who have removed products from their shelves or product lines have stated that they will not raise the price of their beef. Branstad also stated that he would recommend that Iowa state public schools continue to use milled beef containing the product, and stated plans to "send letters to public schools, encouraging them to continue buying LFTB".
On March 22, 2012, 41 Democrats in Congress, led by Representative Chellie Pingree of Maine, wrote to the Secretary of Agriculture of the United States Tom Vilsack, head of the USDA, that "created a two-tier school lunch program where children in less time the affluent community served by low-grade slurry is wrong and urges its elimination from all lunches in public schools Sen. Jon Tester of Montana released a news release in March 2012 urging Agriculture Minister Vilsack to remove "pink mucus" from school lunches and replace it with " high-quality Montana beef. "Tester said he plans to include provisions in upcoming agricultural bills that will allow schools to be more flexible in using USDA commodity funds, to increase the choice of buying locally produced and manufactured food.
Lunch at school
Reactions to the product were also partially credited to the Change.org petition which had landed over a quarter of a million signatures to ban it at school lunches. After some parents and consumer advocates insisted that the product be removed from public schools, the USDA indicated, starting in the fall of 2012, that it would provide the school district of choice between beef with or without LFTB. CBS News reports that Chicago's public schools may have served "pink mucus" at school lunches.
While some school districts have their own suppliers, many school districts buy beef directly from the USDA and do not know what is inside the beef. For 2012, the USDA plans to buy 7 million pounds of lean cuts of meat for the U.S. national school lunch program. USDA spokesman Mike Jarvis stated that of the 117 million pounds of nationally ordered beef for a school lunch program last year, 6% was LFTB. The California Department of Education data analysis shows that "anywhere from none to nearly 3 million pounds of USDA beef served at California schools last year could contain a fine, non-fat textured beef". According to the USDA, the cost difference between beef with and without additives is estimated at about 3%.
BPI demands
On September 13, 2012, the BPI announced that they filed a $ 1.2 billion lawsuit, Beef Products, Inc. v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., against ABC News; three journalists (Diane Sawyer, Jim Avila and David Kerley) and others, claimed ABC News made nearly "200 false, misleading and defamatory statements, repeated constantly during the month-long disinformation campaign," engaged in "product irregularities and food, and torture interference with business relationships ". BPI calls ABC News series an "integrated disinformation campaign" against LFTB.
ABC News rejected BPI's claim, and called the lawsuit selflessly. ABC News attempted to move the case from a South Dakota state court to a federal court. In June 2013, a federal judge sent a lawsuit back to the state court. On March 27, 2014, South Dakota state court Judge Cheryle Gering rejected ABC's command to dismiss, and let the defamation lawsuit move forward. Diane Sawyer's motion for a summary assessment was given and she was dismissed.
The trial of this case begins June 5, 2017, at Elk Point, South Dakota. The court, in the court building being renovated for this event, is expected to take 8 weeks, but is completed after three weeks. The court ruled that the BPI was a "public figure;" thus, evidence of "actual crime" is necessary to support the defamation ruling. ABC is represented by Williams & amp; Connolly, BPI by Winston & amp; Draw. South Dakota has a food removal law that may have allowed triple the damage to $ 5.7 billion if there was a ruling for the plaintiff.
On June 28, 2017, ABC and BPI reached a settlement, ending the lawsuit. Settlement terms not disclosed. Walt Disney's earnings report shows that the amount paid is at least $ 177 million.
Current use
As of March 2012, 70% of beef in the US contains subtle, non-fat textured beef, and a year later in March 2013 the number is estimated by a meat industry official of about 5%. This significant reduction is partly due to extensive media coverage beginning in March 2012 on additives. Kroger Co. and Supervalu Inc. has stopped using additives.
Cargill started using a label that says "Contains Finely Textured Beef" starting 2014. The production of fine-textured beef increased slightly, as beef prices rose 27% over two years in 2014 and "retailers [looking for] cheaper cuts to put into in meat and hamburger processors look for new products to put in ". Cargill's senior management claims the recovery is almost full as sales triple-fold. BPI recovers 40 customers, mostly processors and patty makers who distribute to retailers and USDAs since March 2012. It does not label its products.
Rule
In the US, additives are not for direct consumer sales. The finely textured beef can form up to 15% milled meat without additional labels, and can be added to other meat products such as processed meat based beef.
Due to the use of ammonium hydroxide in its processing, non-fat fine textured beef by BPI is not allowed in Canada. Health Canada states that: "Ammonia is not permitted in Canada for use on beef or meat during their production" and should not be imported, because the Canadian Food and Drug Law requires that imported meat products meet the same standards and requirements as domestic meat. Canada allows Cargill that produces fine acid Textured Acid (FTM) to "be used in the preparation of ground meat" and "identified as ground meat" under certain conditions.
Finely textured beef and Textured Fine Meat is prohibited for human consumption in the European Union (EU).
Public perception
The nature of the product and its processing leads to concerns that it may pose a risk to human health, despite the fact that no cases of foodborne illness are reported as a result of product consumption. Among consumers, media reporting significantly reduces its acceptance in addition to beef.
A Harris Interactive survey commissioned by Red Robin and released on April 4, 2012, found that 88% of US adults are aware of the problem of "pink mucus", and 76% conscious people indicate they are "at least a bit worried" with 30% "very concerned". 53% of respondents stated that they realized that pink mucus took some action, such as researching the beef they bought or consuming, or reducing or eliminating the consumption of beef.
Legislation
Some consumer advocacy groups are urging the removal of pink mucus or for mandatory additive disclosure in beef, but a spokeswoman from Beef Products Inc. at that time said no need to label additional labels, asked "What should we label? It's 100 percent beef, what do you want us to label? I'm not ready to say it anything other than beef, because it's 100 percent beef ".
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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