Beef Products
Encyclopedia
Beef Products Inc. of Dakota Dunes, South Dakota
, is a processor of beef trimmings. The company uses a patented process to enhance the pH in beef trimmings with ammonia
that reduces the incidence of E. coli in downstream products. The safety of meat treated with the process has been called into question by the New York Times.
The product, "Lean Finely Textured Beef", is a derivative of fatty beef trimmings which are warmed and put through a centrifuge to remove fat and treated with ammonia to kill bacteria when a pH
of 10 is reached. This process is approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration
. The meat Beef Products Inc. produces is just one component in ground beef, usually no more than 25 percent of the final product. Carol Tucker Foreman, director of the Food Safety Institute for the Consumer Federation of America
, and Nancy Donley, the president of Safe Tables Our Priority are strong backers of this technology-based approach to food safety.
In July 2011, in the aftermath of an E. coli outbreak in Germany, Beef Products Inc. began voluntarily testing its products for 6 additional strains of E. coli contamination.
Beef Products Inc. is a major supplier to McDonald's
, Burger King
and the School Lunch Program
.
Dakota Dunes, South Dakota
Dakota Dunes is an unincorporated, master-planned residential and commercial development covering about in Union County in the extreme southeast corner of the U.S. state of South Dakota. The development is sandwiched between the Big Sioux River and the Missouri River...
, is a processor of beef trimmings. The company uses a patented process to enhance the pH in beef trimmings with ammonia
Ammonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
that reduces the incidence of E. coli in downstream products. The safety of meat treated with the process has been called into question by the New York Times.
The product, "Lean Finely Textured Beef", is a derivative of fatty beef trimmings which are warmed and put through a centrifuge to remove fat and treated with ammonia to kill bacteria when a pH
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
of 10 is reached. This process is approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
. The meat Beef Products Inc. produces is just one component in ground beef, usually no more than 25 percent of the final product. Carol Tucker Foreman, director of the Food Safety Institute for the Consumer Federation of America
Consumer Federation of America
The Consumer Federation of America is a non-profit organization founded in 1968 to advance consumer interests through research, education and advocacy....
, and Nancy Donley, the president of Safe Tables Our Priority are strong backers of this technology-based approach to food safety.
In July 2011, in the aftermath of an E. coli outbreak in Germany, Beef Products Inc. began voluntarily testing its products for 6 additional strains of E. coli contamination.
Beef Products Inc. is a major supplier to McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
, Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
and the School Lunch Program
National School Lunch Act
The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act is a United States federal law signed by President Harry S. Truman in 1946. The act created the National School Lunch Program , a program to provide low-cost or free school lunch meals to qualified students through subsidies to schools...
.