We have been reporting on the staggering amount of “pink slime” used in the U.S. food industry over the last few months. Pink slime is a meat filler made from “ammoniated boneless lean beef trimmings or similar products, which are considered unfit for human consumption until ammonia has been added.”
In early March, it was reported by ABC that a shocking 70% of ground beef at supermarkets contained this pink slime. Since this disgusting food additive has been exposed, natural health activists rallied to demand its removal from McDonald’s and school lunches. Now major grocery chains are falling to the pressure of activism.
First McDonald’s was forced to stop ammonia-soaked pink slime in their beef after a campaign led by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver raised awareness of McDonald’s use of the meat filler.
Next, activists targeted pink slime in school lunch programs forcing the USDA to cave in and permit schools to opt out of using this tainted meat in public school lunches.
Just yesterday, Safeway, SUPERVALU and Food Lion announced they will no longer carry what the beef glued together with “pink slime” fillers.
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“While the USDA and food industry experts agree that lean, finely textured beef is safe and wholesome, recent news stories have caused considerable consumer concern about this product. Safeway will no longer purchase ground beef containing lean, finely textured beef,” Safeway said in a statement.
In addition to these large food retailers, Walmart also announced they will offer ground beef without pink slime, though they declined to remove all the beef that contained lean finely textured beef (LFTB).
“Recently some customers have expressed concerns with lean finely textured beef (LFTB) and, while the USDA and experts agree that it is safe and nutritious, Walmart and Sam’s Club will begin offering fresh ground beef that does not contain LFTB,” Walmart said.
These recent actions prove that when the public is informed about what they’re consuming they will demand healthier products. It should be noted that once this story broke into the mainstream, it took less than one month for the public outcry to reach enough critical mass to affect change. And it proved that even large conglomerates will quickly change their policies when enough people demand it.
The story of pink slime was echoed by the alternative media long before it was picked up by mainstream news outlets, much like the story of meat glue going mainstream. We can also see this happening with GMO foods where activism is exposing the health dangers and forcing lawmakers to support GMO labeling.
