Which foods are more American or popular than the hamburger? Not many. Cargill, the large food company, estimates that 14 billion hamburgers are eaten in the U.S. annually. Many of these hamburger patties are sold through fast food restaurants like McDonalds, Burger King and Wendys or sold in bulk through grocery stores. Where do those ubiquitous, preformed hamburger patties come from and what is in them? The answer is not pretty.
Most bulk grocery store and fast food hamburger patties are trimmings sourced from multiple suppliers at multiple worldwide locations. Trimmings contain miscellaneous beef parts and fat that is removed from the bones, and near the hides and other extremities of the cows, usually using advanced meat recovery methods. Lean, primal cuts of meat are not used to make hamburger patties.
How are these miscellaneous byproduct beef parts, that are sourced from multiple cows worldwide, made into patties that are fit for human consumption? Given the multiple sources, and unknown cleanliness of the worldwide slaughterhouses, how are E. coli and salmonella eliminated? The answer is ammonia gas, a chemical you use to clean the kitchen or bathroom.
Yes, ammonia gas and hamburger patties are linked. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved ammonia gas as a processing agent that slaughterhouses, meat packing plants and food processors can use to kill any pathogens that are likely present in processed hamburger patties. Further, the USDA does not require ammonia gas to be listed anywhere on the hamburger’s nutrition or food label. Thus, a single preformed hamburger patty likely consists of ground up beef parts and byproducts scraped from hooves, skulls, hides and other extremities with some ammonia gas thrown in for good measure.
Do not settle for preformed hamburger patties. Use a meat grinder to grind primal cuts of meat and make your own homemade hamburger patties.
Related Meat Grinder Reviews Articles
What Ingredients Are In Store Bought Ground Beef?
Use A Meat Grinder To Avoid Food Recalls And Food Poisoning
Published 12/29/2010 12:00:00 AM
Tags: Food Safety