# Pink Slime: what's the issue? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 9, 2012, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332 "2012-03-09T21:57:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/21 "2012-03-10T19:15:07Z")
> [@VOW](#): > > How many other foods do you eat that have to be disinfected first? Well, the vegetables from right in my backyard garden. Grown organically, with horse manure fertilizer and no chemicals at all. But I still clean it carefully. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/22 "2012-03-10T19:23:33Z")
> [@VOW](#): > > How many times in, say, the past ten years have you heard about recalls of ground meat because of contamination with E. coli? And it’s always GROUND MEAT that is the product recalled. Actually, a lot of the recalls I remember have been vegetables. Like spinach, for example. Just a month ago, [114 tons recalled, with no public notice.](http://efoodalert.net/2012/02/09/114-tons-of-spinach-recalled-by-stealth/) ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/23 "2012-03-10T19:31:41Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > and hot dogs do not contain organ meats. I’m disappointed by both revelations.) Many of these urban legends are obviously false when you think about the economics. Organ meats are fairly expensive (just look at the price for good calves liver in the supermarket), so why would they use them in hot dogs? Same with the story that McDonalds burgers contain ground worms – why would they do that, when worms are more expensive than ground beef (smller market, no byproducts like leather, etc.)? It just doesn’t make sense. But applying common sense to urban legends generally deflates them. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/24 "2012-03-10T19:34:54Z")
I think we have evolved a revulsion response to things based on a number of triggers. The things you might find in hospital waste that seem disgusting are also going to tend to be infectious or otherwise dangerous. Speaking broadly, our instinctive responses - fear of heights and spiders, avoidance of vomit, moving away from loud deep noises - have tended to be helpful. Obviously. What’s afoot now is an industry feeding us tons of a substance we would probably resist touching with our toe if given the chance. There doesn’t have to be any implication of illegality or cheating. The idea that this industry has been getting us to eat this stuff, to make (I bet) less than a dollar a pound for doing so, is horrible. ---
**Author:** ![Michael63129](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@Michael63129](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael63129)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/25 "2012-03-10T19:48:57Z")
> [@VOW](#): > > And the idea that this “product” has the potential of such serious contamination that AMMONIA is needed to kill off the pathogens to make it safe for human consumption is frightful. How many other foods do you eat that have to be disinfected first?~VOW I would think that cooking would be enough to kill off any pathogens (and any that are present shouldn’t multiply if kept frozen until cooking). After all, it always tells you to cook thoroughly. Only meats that don’t have to be cooked (precooked) don’t have such warnings on them. This also explains why vegetables cause so many outbreaks of E. coli ([current example](http://www.foodpoisonjournal.com/foodborne-illness-outbreaks/jimmy-johns-sprouts-e-coli-outbreak-reaches-washtenaw-kent-wayne-oakland-and-macomb-counties-michiga/)), since they are often eaten raw. Also, if one isn’t going to eat meat because of the way they processed it and the potential for antibiotics and other contaminants, then most fruits and vegetables are also off, unless you grow them yourself (FWIW, recently on a container of chicken livers I saw a label that said that hormones are prohibited; the milk I drink comes from Prairie Farms which claims not to use any hormones - not that there aren’t already hormones in milk). ---
**Author:** ![wheresmymind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/91b2a8/32.png) [@wheresmymind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheresmymind)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/26 "2012-03-10T19:51:23Z")
At least judging from the reaction of the people on my FB wall, the issue with most people seems to be that it’s “gross,” and that it’s treated with ammonia. Personally, I don’t have a problem with pink slime per se, but what I DO have a problem with is it not being indicated as an ingredient on a package. I’m not sure what the euphemistic marketing term for pink slime is (along the lines of “mechanically separated beef” or “processed meat product”), but what I’ve read seems to indicate that it’s being introduced into products without mention, i.e. someone buys “ground sirloin” but is in fact paying for a product that has been diluted with a lesser-quality ingredient. As for the ammonia scare, it’s your standard “Chemicals!!! They cause cancer and are bad for you! I don’t want CHEMICALS in my food.” Never mind that ammonia occurs naturally in just about every food we eat, and that the concentrations found in pink slime are comparable to those found in “normal” fresh foods that we eat every day. As for the “Fecal matter! Ewww! E. coli!!!” reaction, well that’s why it’s being treated with ammonium. The product has to pass the same standards when it comes to E. coli contamination as any other meat product. People should keep in mind that most of the largest and most-damaging outbreaks of food-borne pathogens in recent years have been from vegetables. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/27 "2012-03-10T20:14:35Z")
I think there is an issue with being exposed to such products without informed consent. If we understood what we were eating, how it is produced then there would not be a problem. The meat industry is not stupid, it knows we would never agree to consume this muck if we knew these details, so we are deceived and information is often scarce, and tainted with partisan reporting. If we would choose not to consume this, then disguising it amounts to fraud. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/w8RVNH5T4kk/maxresdefault.jpg "Britain's Really Disgusting Food: Meat - Part 1") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8RVNH5T4kk) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/28 "2012-03-10T22:39:04Z")
ABC’s nightly news had a report on this a couple days ago. They tried and tried to get various grocers to simply say do you sell meat with pink slime or not. They got very few real answers. Costco and Whole Foods were the only ones that said they don’t sell meat with pink slime. That’s really the disturbing part. There’s no labeling. That tells consumers if its pure ground meat or does it have the connective tissue (pink slime) added. I’ll pay an extra 50 cents a pound to get the better product. Other people may prefer the savings and buy the econo meat. Label it and let consumers make a choice. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/29 "2012-03-11T01:37:31Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > with horse manure fertilizer and no chemicals at all. I’ll leave it to others to point up the obvious, glaring inconsistency here. ---
**Author:** ![Cheshire\_Human](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Cheshire\_Human](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheshire_Human)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/30 "2012-03-11T04:53:12Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > The meat industry is not stupid, **it knows we would never agree to consume this muck** if we knew these details,… Funny, I eat [this stuff](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potted_meat_food_product) all the time, and I know damn well what’s in it. > [@dracoi](#): > > Frankly, my take on it is the same as my take on Taco Bell meat and organ meat in hot dogs - if there is a way to extend the meat supply and make products cheaper, I’m all for it. (And the Taco Bell and hot dog examples might be good comparisons, since Taco Bell insists it only uses only seasoned beef, and hot dogs do not contain organ meats. I’m disappointed by both revelations.) You might like that stuff I mentioned, above, too. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/31 "2012-03-11T05:48:00Z")
It occurred to me that this pink slime was added at some point in the past 10 to 20 years. The meat industry could have announced this amazing new way to make hamburger cheaper and sold it that way. Giving us the choice of buying the original hamburger ground meat or the econo stuff. Instead they quietly sneak it in and continue charging the same price. The consumer is clueless and I guess we’re an easy mark. Even worse, our FDA was in on it too. I can’t help but wonder how long they got away with this? Ten years? Twenty? How many billions did they make by using chemically enhanced trimmings instead of muscle meats from the cow? I totally understand the logic in using every scrap of meat from the cow. What I don’t understand is charging full price for it. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/32 "2012-03-11T06:30:06Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > My question also. People always bring this up as though connective tissue is known to be inedible or non-digestible or something. Is it? Or is this just the “ew, gross” factor at play again? Cartilage is commonly eaten in the eastern hemisphere. It’s often roasted on a skewer and sounds very crunch when eaten. I refuse to touch it but only because I was raised to throw everything that didn’t fit my family’s definition of meat into the garbage. This includes fat, bones, tendons, organ meat. I’m an adult now and I’ve learned that these things have legitimate uses in the wonderful world of gastronomy. I also eat scrapple, which is mostly offal or “garbage meat”. But it has to be thin and crispy (i.e. heavily processed and almost burned). > [@VOW](#): > > And the idea that this “product” has the potential of such serious contamination that AMMONIA is needed to kill off the pathogens to make it safe for human consumption is frightful. Is the same “serious contamination” that many products are susceptible to. [Short video on ammonia in foods](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Fj81Ljx58s) produced by Beef Products Inc. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/33 "2012-03-11T15:58:44Z")
> [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](#): > > Is the same “serious contamination” that many products are susceptible to. > > [Short video on ammonia in foods](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Fj81Ljx58s) produced by Beef Products Inc. I’m all for this being overblown fearmongering to get people to pay more money for meat, but I don’t think Beef Products, Inc, is likely an unbiased source. ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Medlo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hi\_Medlo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Medlo)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/34 "2012-03-11T16:34:01Z")
I think it’s interesting that other cultures are considered virtuous for using the whole animal and wasting nothing, but when we do it it’s terrible. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/35 "2012-03-11T17:12:59Z")
> [@Hi\_Medlo](#): > > I think it’s interesting that other cultures are considered virtuous for using the whole animal and wasting nothing, but when we do it it’s terrible. This. I think that people are overreacting due to the “yuck” factor. Nearly every part of an animal is edible. Why should we waste any of it? As to the concerns about ammonia; ammonia is definitely a case of “the dose makes the poision”. > **[Ammonia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ammonia)** > > .mw-parser-output .ib-chembox{border-collapse:collapse;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .ib-chembox td,.mw-parser-output .ib-chembox th{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;width:40%}.mw-parser-output .ib-chembox td+td{width:60%}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .ib-chembox figure:not(.skin-invert-image):not(.skin-invert):not(.bg-transparent){background:var(--background-color-inverted,#f8f9fa)}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-p... Humans, and other mammals, ingest small amounts of ammonia in their food naturally and also form ammonia as a waste product. Our bodies convert ammonia to urea. So as long the ammonia in the so-called “pink slime” is kept below a certain level, there shouldn’t be any problems. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/36 "2012-03-11T18:28:20Z")
> [@Cheshire\_Human](#): > > Funny, I eat [this stuff](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potted_meat_food_product) all the time, and I know damn well what’s in it. > You might like that stuff I mentioned, above, too. I do occasionally eat potted meat. Partly, I keep it as a backup in case there’s an emergency. Overall, I think it needs less fat, less salt and better texture, but it is pretty tasty. I definitely support the concept. Waste not, want not. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/37 "2012-03-11T18:42:28Z")
> [@wheresmymind](#): > > At least judging from the reaction of the people on my FB wall, the issue with most people seems to be that it’s “gross,” and that it’s treated with ammonia. Personally, I don’t have a problem with pink slime per se, but what I DO have a problem with is it not being indicated as an ingredient on a package. I’m not sure what the euphemistic marketing term for pink slime is (along the lines of “mechanically separated beef” or “processed meat product”), but what I’ve read seems to indicate that it’s being introduced into products without mention, i.e. someone buys “ground sirloin” but is in fact paying for a product that has been diluted with a lesser-quality ingredient. > > As for the ammonia scare, it’s your standard “Chemicals!!! They cause cancer and are bad for you! I don’t want CHEMICALS in my food.” Never mind that ammonia occurs naturally in just about every food we eat, and that the concentrations found in pink slime are comparable to those found in “normal” fresh foods that we eat every day. > > As for the “Fecal matter! Ewww! E. coli!!!” reaction, well that’s why it’s being treated with ammonium. The product has to pass the same standards when it comes to E. coli contamination as any other meat product. People should keep in mind that most of the largest and most-damaging outbreaks of food-borne pathogens in recent years have been from vegetables. Well said! Common sense raises its beautiful head! ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2012, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/38 "2012-03-12T01:04:29Z")
I’m a carnivore. Here’s the way I deal with the situation. There is a convenient supermarket with a great butcher shop. I buy steaks and grill them. I also like dishes that include ground beef. I shop the sales. Oftentimes, you can find roasts or London Broil that is selling at about the same price or less than the ground beef. I also save anything that is left over from the grill. I have a Kitchen-Aid mixer and a grinding attachment. Buy the whole chunk of beef and grind it up. Also, use the leftovers from the grill. Freeze the extra if you have to. Then you know that there is nothing “yukky” that is being added. It will taste better, especially if you are making burgers. It makes for better food. It’s a little more trouble but it is worth it. It’s nice to know that your hamburger contains prime Angus Porterhouse beef because you know it does. No mess, no slime. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2012, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/39 "2012-03-12T01:36:35Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > but I don’t think Beef Products, Inc, is likely an unbiased source. They can’t seriously expect us to swallow that tripe… ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2012, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332/40 "2012-03-12T02:12:59Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I’m all for this being overblown fearmongering to get people to pay more money for meat, but I don’t think Beef Products, Inc, is likely an unbiased source. They’re not, in fact they make the product in question. But the video is pretty straightforward and explains, in non-sensational terms (i.e. non Jamie Oliver terms) how they make their product and why the ammonia gas is used and gosh darn, doncha know pretty much everything has ammonia in it, and by the way we don’t pour Janitor in a Drum over the meat like Jamie says. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pink-slime-whats-the-issue/615332.md?page=3)