# Taco Bell's Ground Beef Is Less Than 35% Actual Meat **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 25, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875 "2011-01-25T03:09:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/1 "2011-01-25T03:09:36Z")
It’s no skin off my nose personally, as I don’t eat meat and can’t recall the last time I ever had food at Taco Bell, but the popular, budget-friendly “Mexican” restaurant chain is being sued in Alabama for false advertising, as its “ground beef mixture” was tested and found to contain less that 35% meat in total (the other ingredients included oats, soybeans, ground-up Chinese newspaper, and chemicals, lots and lots of chemicals) which I guess even by fast-food standards is pretty shakey. I suppose that Taco Bell enthusiasts already know they are not getting Kobe beef in their 49-cent tacos, but I wonder if this news will hurt Taco Bell’s business. Will any of you stop patronizing Taco Bell over this? ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/2 "2011-01-25T03:11:20Z")
No, I usually get the beans. Though they are probably made from French newspapers… I see a vegetarian niche here… ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/3 "2011-01-25T03:13:22Z")
I’ve never been much of a fan anyway. I’m surprised this hasn’t been exposed before. Any response from Taco Bell? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/4 "2011-01-25T03:18:01Z")
I am a very occasional customer at Taco Bell. I don’t care (assuming you are joking about the newspaper.) I doubt that any of their regular clientele will care either. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/5 "2011-01-25T03:18:52Z")
Obviously my google-fu is weak. I cannot find a source for the newspaper. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41242132/ns/business-consumer\_news/](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41242132/ns/business-consumer_news/) I really don’t eat at Taco Bell, but I have to say I will wait till I hear from someone other than a lawfirm trying to take Taco Bell to the cleaners before I belive this one as fact. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/6 "2011-01-25T03:19:26Z")
I used to work for Taco Time \. It was over 20 years ago, but at the time the meat was a 40/60 mixture of TVP and beef. (60% TVP, 40% beef) I’ve always assumed it was the same everywhere. If you’ve ever made ground beef tacos at home, surely you’ve noticed that the consistency of the meat is never the same as at the restaurants. And that is why. The military and government have used TVP to stretch meat for…I don’t know, but it has to be many decades. With the exception of the newspaper \ this isn’t news at all. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/7 "2011-01-25T03:20:22Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > It’s no skin off my nose personally, as I don’t eat meat and can’t recall the last time I ever had food at Taco Bell, but the popular, budget-friendly “Mexican” restaurant chain is being sued in Alabama for false advertising, as its “ground beef mixture” was tested and found to contain less that 35% meat in total (the other ingredients included oats, soybeans, ground-up Chinese newspaper, and chemicals, lots and lots of chemicals) which I guess even by fast-food standards is pretty shakey. I’m eating a taco right now…hey! Deng Xiao-Peng died! ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/8 "2011-01-25T03:20:40Z")
Do they import the newspaper? Wouldn’t it make more financial sense to use old telephone books? ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/9 "2011-01-25T03:27:24Z")
The Chinese newspaper bit was a just silly Simpson’s reference—I can’t recall all the actual by-products that the lawsuit listed, but oats and soy protein were the first two mentioned… ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/10 "2011-01-25T03:27:39Z")
My doctor told me I wasn’t getting enough news in my diet… I may need to switch over to Taco Bell. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/11 "2011-01-25T03:34:10Z")
I had two Taco Bell ‘beef burritos’ yesterday. They haven’t been on the menu for well over a decade at least, but you can still order them. Just “ground beef”, cheese, onions, and sauce. They taste the same to me now as they tasted twenty years ago, and they haven’t killed me yet. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/12 "2011-01-25T03:34:31Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > The Chinese newspaper bit was a just silly Simpson’s reference—I can’t recall all the actual by-products that the lawsuit listed, but oats and soy protein were the first two mentioned… Let me introduce you to something you have certainly eaten in your lifetime, though you may not have been aware of it. TVP, short for Texturized Vegetable Protein. The Wiki seems straight on to me, though you might want to look elsewhere if you think it’s wrong. > [@](#): > > Textured or texturized vegetable protein (TVP), also known as textured soy protein (TSP), soy meat, or soya meat is a meat analogue or nutritious meat extender made from defatted soy flour, a by-product of extracting soybean oil.[1] It is quick to cook, with a protein content equal to that of the meat,[2] and contains no fat. > > TVP is made from a mixture of proteins extracted primarily from soybeans, but also cotton seeds, wheat and oats. > > Textured vegetable protein is a versatile substance, different forms allowing it to take on the texture of whatever ground meat it is substituting. Using textured vegetable protein, one can make vegetarian or vegan versions of traditionally meat dishes such as chili, spaghetti bolognese, sloppy joes, tacos, burgers, or burritos. > > Soy products also are used as a low cost substitute in meat and poultry products.[4][5] Food service, retail and institutional (primarily school lunch and correctional) facilities regularly use such “extended” products. Extension may result in diminished flavor, but fat and cholesterol are reduced. Vitamin and mineral fortification can be used to make soy products nutritionally equivalent to animal protein; the protein quality is already roughly equivalent.[6] > > Textured vegetable protein can be found in natural food stores and larger supermarkets, usually in the bulk section.TVP is also very lightweight, and is often used in backpacking recipes. TVP is often used in prisons and schools for several reasons: its low relative cost, high protein and low fat contents make it ideal, as does its relatively long shelf life, which allows institutions to buy in bulk. > **[Textured vegetable protein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textured_vegetable_protein)** > > Textured or texturized vegetable protein (TVP), also known as textured soy protein (TSP), soy meat, or soya chunks, is a defatted soy flour product, a by-product of extracting soybean oil. It is often used as a meat analogue or meat extender. It is quick to cook, with a protein content comparable to some meats. > TVP may be produced from any protein-rich seed meal left over from vegetable oil production. Specifically, a wide range of pulse seeds besides soybean, including lentils, peas, and faba b... ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/13 "2011-01-25T03:41:28Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > It’s no skin off my nose personally, as I don’t eat meat and can’t recall the last time I ever had food at Taco Bell, but the popular, budget-friendly “Mexican” restaurant chain is being sued in Alabama for false advertising, as its “ground beef mixture” was tested and found to contain less that 35% meat in total (the other ingredients included oats, soybeans, ground-up Chinese newspaper, and chemicals, lots and lots of chemicals) which I guess even by fast-food standards is pretty shakey. > > I suppose that Taco Bell enthusiasts already know they are not getting Kobe beef in their 49-cent tacos, but I wonder if this news will hurt Taco Bell’s business. > > Will any of you stop patronizing Taco Bell over this? Whoa, whoa, wait a minute…where can I get tacos for 49 cents?!? mmm ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/14 "2011-01-25T03:42:35Z")
I never get the tacos on the very rare occasions I got to Taco Bell. It’s been sort of a quasi-meat paste for years now (it USED to be real ground beef, and the tacos were at least edible IMHO). These days I get the grilled burrito with steak (never the default ‘ground meat’), and if it’s not real steak it at least tastes like and has the consistency of meat. All of the fast food places I remember as a kid have changed how they make stuff and what they use for ingredients. Wendy’s used to have a decent hamburger, McDonald’s used to have decent fries, Domino’s and Pizza Hut/Pizza Inn used to actually be worth getting …even Burger King was edible when I was a kid. And, of course, Taco Bell used to actually have fast food that was edible, if not real Mexican food. Sadly, none of those places are worth feeding to my dog anymore (IMHO). These days about the only ‘fast food’ places I got to are Dion’s and Pei Wei. -XT ---
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/15 "2011-01-25T03:47:35Z")
That would actually make me more inclined to eat at TB. Of course, most people will be outraged to find out they’re actually eating something more healthy than they thought. And look for other chains to start touting “100% real beef” to take advantage of the oinkers. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/16 "2011-01-25T03:56:35Z")
The tacos are just a hot-sauce delivery system anyway. ---
**Author:** ![SandyHook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dec6dc/32.png) [@SandyHook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandyHook)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/17 "2011-01-25T04:04:48Z")
Other than coffee I buy from only one fast food chain. Ms Hook and I are in love with the Subway sandwhiches. When we are traveling the probably have them 5-6 times a week. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/18 "2011-01-25T04:05:34Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > …even Burger King was edible when I was a kid. Edibility aside, Burger King’s side dishes used to have taste. I don’t mean they taste bad now, they _literally_ don’t have _any_ taste. Their “onion rings”, french fries, and hash browns all have slightly less flavor than a mixture of cardboard and raw corn starch. I mean that literally. Their onion rings, especially, actually taste like cardboard. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/19 "2011-01-25T04:06:16Z")
Yeah, not getting the outrage. But then, there was that ten years there when \*all \*the burritos I made had a 100/0 TVP-to-beef ratio. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875/20 "2011-01-25T04:06:20Z")
I love Taco Bell, and couldn’t care less. I ate the 7-Layer burrito for years thinking it had meat in it. It doesn’t. Still tastes good and fills me up. As long as it looks and tastes the same, let them go all veggie. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bells-ground-beef-is-less-than-35-actual-meat/568875.md?page=2)