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Pink Slime

We suggested some answers, you're the one that wants to know why the USDA puts a 15% limit on it in burgers, why don't you ask them?
 
slingblade said:
Not really. I've already said I can't tell any difference in the ground beef I buy, it tastes fine to me, and I love potted meat.

Surely you can tell I have warped taste buds, from that alone? :D
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And if other people feel there is/taste a difference, do you support their right to labeling?
 
Skeptic Ginger said:
And if other people feel there is/taste a difference, do you support their right to labeling?
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While I understand your concern, I'm not sure this makes any sense. Different taste isn't the basis for any labeling I'm aware of. It's beef, albeit some sort of processed abomination related only at the subatomic level.
If labels were expanded to include the processing or manufacturing methods I could see this happening, but until then it appears to be a legitimate "loophole".
 
Furcifer said:
While I understand your concern, I'm not sure this makes any sense. Different taste isn't the basis for any labeling I'm aware of. It's beef, albeit some sort of processed abomination related only at the subatomic level.
If labels were expanded to include the processing or manufacturing methods I could see this happening, but until then it appears to be a legitimate "loophole".
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As has been noted, hooves are "beef" under your definition.

If LBT is so similar to the rest of the burger, why not market it alone? It's not illegal to sell the stuff as a food product as Joey seems to misunderstand. It's illegal to call something hamburger if you put too much in it. Why not sell pure lean beef trimmings? If it tasted good they would have. There is no law I can see that says you can't sell it by itself.
 
Skeptic Ginger said:
As has been noted, hooves are "beef" under your definition.

If LBT is so similar to the rest of the burger, why not market it alone? It's not illegal to sell the stuff as a food product as Joey seems to misunderstand. It's illegal to call something hamburger if you put too much in it. Why not sell pure lean beef trimmings? If it tasted good they would have. There is no law I can see that says you can't sell it by itself.
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Well no, not really. The USDA and FDA I believe have a definition of "beef" and it's something like fat, muscle, fibrous tissue, but not connective tissue like tendons andl ligaments etc. I'm pretty sure it was posted in the other thread I mentioned. Sufficed to say hooves don't meet ;) the definition but LBT does.
I don't know why they can't sell it, but I can see why they don't sell it. It's an additive and it needs to be ground into the beef to make into a product. It's best suited for sale to distributors and the like.

eta: chicken nuggets come to mind. you can't buy the insides of chicken nuggets at the store. same idea. (the processed ones of course)
 
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Furcifer said:
Well no, not really. The USDA and FDA I believe have a definition of "beef" and it's something like fat, muscle, fibrous tissue, but not connective tissue like tendons andl ligaments etc. I'm pretty sure it was posted in the other thread I mentioned. Sufficed to say hooves don't meet ;) the definition but LBT does.
I don't know why they can't sell it, but I can see why they don't sell it. It's an additive and it needs to be ground into the beef to make into a product. It's best suited for sale to distributors and the like.

eta: chicken nuggets come to mind. you can't buy the insides of chicken nuggets at the store. same idea. (the processed ones of course)
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Did you even bother to check what the FDA and or USDA define "beef" as?

USDA Glossary
Beef
Meat from full-grown cattle about two years old. “Baby beef” and “calf” are interchangeable terms used to describe young cattle weighing about 700 pounds that have been raised mainly on milk and grass.

Beef Patties
“Beef Patties” shall consist of chopped fresh and/or frozen beef with or without the addition of beef fat and/or seasonings.

Ground Beef
“Ground Beef” or “Chopped Beef” shall consist of chopped fresh and/or frozen beef with or without seasoning and without the addition of beef fat as such, shall not contain more than 30 percent fat, and shall not contain added water, phosphates, binders, or extenders.

Hamburger
“Hamburger” shall consist of chopped fresh and/or frozen beef with or without the addition of beef fat as such and/or seasoning, shall not contain more than 30 percent fat, and shall not contain added water, phosphates, binders, or extenders.

Meat
The flesh of animals used as food including the dressed flesh of cattle, swine, sheep, or goats and other edible animals, except fish, poultry, and wild game animals.
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They don't define "Lean Beef Trimmings", "Beef Trimmings", "Trimmings", "Finely Textured Beef", "Flesh", "Connective Tissue", or "Protein".


The whole issue of industry lobbyists successfully petitioning Congress to change the FDA definition of ground beef so they could add this product without teling anyone was discussed at length already in the thread. And a university sponsored analysis of the stuff found it contained a considerable amount of connective tissue compared to usual ground beef.

If you think something contradictory besides the company that sells the stuff's claims was cited in either thread, post the citation.
 
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Skeptic Ginger said:
The whole issue of industry lobbyists successfully petitioning Congress to change the FDA definition of ground beef so they could add this product without teling anyone was discussed at length already in the thread.
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You make a statement as if it is an objectively proven fact, when it is actually misleading at best. The 'evidence' that 'industry lobbyists petitioned Congress to change the definition' is basically that an individual happened to change jobs to a position that paid her about $70,000 a year when the average salary of a 35-54 yr old American female (with a bachelors degree) as of 2009 was ~$67,000. Source.

Do you have anything more than this to support your claim?

Skeptic Ginger said:
And a university sponsored analysis of the stuff found it contained a considerable amount of connective tissue compared to usual ground beef.
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a) The author of the university sponsored analysis has come on record to claim that people are reading his study wrong. Furthermore, if your problem is with texture, the study says that it makes the meat more tender.
b) I have linked to at least 2 different studies which show that it is the quality of the connective tissue that matters, and not quantity. Veal has higher connective tissue percentage than beef, but is much more tender and soft.
 
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