Entry #5: Savoring Every Last Bit

Greetings (once again) Reader! Today, I will be sharing my thoughts and insights about a fairly recent controversial topic, "pink slime." More specifically, I'll be talking about a portion of an episode of a show called Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution concerning this topic. My views may not appear conventional or may even come off as appalling, but please do bear with me.

The particular segment of the show I am referring to has the host, Jamie Oliver, showing a group of people a (rough) demonstration of how pink slime is made. He described pink slime as processed meat trimmings that are unfit for human consumption--due to having harmful germs--and are/were initially (possibly when not processed the same way) meant to be made into animal food. The whole process supposedly involves meat trimmings first being put through a mechanical process where the fat is separated from the actual meat; then, they are treated with ammonia to kill off microorganisms; and then, the trimmings are turned into a form of ground meat. Based on the way he described and showed the process, it seemed to me like he had no intention of making pink slime look good or at least acceptable.

For me though, I think it's pretty great how this "pink slime" technology allows us to be less wasteful--than we already are. I really am one for avoiding waste, at least up to a point that is still reasonable. I remember hearing how Spam, the canned meat, comes from meat trimmings--at least partially--that otherwise may have been discarded (not necessarily due to them being unfit for human consumption). (Note: I'm not 100% sure about this information. If it's a cause for concern for you, you can do some research on it instead of avoiding Spam just like that.) Hearing how Spam actually contains meat that would otherwise have been wasted makes me happy to eat it. That's aside from the fact that I find it delicious--especially when it's fried--and not too expensive.

It should also be considered how the efficiency behind "pink slime" may lead us to having to slaughter less animals. It may also lead to having more affordable food.

There is that concern about how ammonia is used to make it. I am not really familiar with how exactly ammonia affects our bodies. If it can be used though in a way that ends up really being safe for human consumption, then I have no problems with it. I believe it would be ignorant to be prejudiced against it just because of the negative notion surrounding it. Like I learned in high school, when it comes to chemistry, things may not always be as they seem. For instance, water or H2O is made from hydrogen--which is a combustible gas--and oxygen--which is needed for a fire to burn. Ironically, they combine into something that can be used to douse fire. This just goes to show how we should look deeper into what chemicals are, how they're used, and how they really affect us in the end; instead of just having prejudiced views towards them. We have to make ourselves more knowledgeable on the matter if we don't trust others, like the government, to check for us if things are fit for us.

In the show, an issue was brought up about how the government doesn't require that companies indicate that ammonia is used for "pink slime" products. I find it to be debatable that consumers aren't informed about this. For one thing, of course one would like to know what he/she is eating. Another thing though is, what if "pink slime" is absolutely alright but people would still refuse it because of the thought surrounding ammonia? Wouldn't that result in a big waste of food that could've been avoided? This is why I find it debatable. I for one though would like to know everything about what I put in my mouth; though, I have no problem "stomaching" the thought of ammonia being used in my food, as long as it's absolutely safe.

About any other concerns surrounding "pink slime..." I'm not too concerned about the bacteria since getting rid of them is what the ammonia is supposedly for. I am also not concerned about what those meat trimmings were initially for since that thought alone doesn't really matter. A lot of things can be repurposed.

Admittedly, I'm not thoroughly informed about this topic, but those are my general insights about it. I really think that Jamie Oliver was making "pink slime" look bad. Whether he was right to do so, I can't really say without knowing if "pink slime" is absolutely safe or not. Otherwise, if it is really a safe, less wasteful way to make a delicious burger, then I'm for it!

This topic definitely deserves to be researched upon more. I encourage you to do so.

Well, that's it from me for now. Thank you for reading! I hope you come back for more soon. Till next time... :-)