E Coli comes from the lower intestines of animals. That is disgusting and nasty. I have slaughtered animals and this is what farmers and hunters go to great efforts to avoid at all costs.
What if they call it "beef slurry" instead of FTGB?
In 1993 there were some deaths resulting from E. coli poisoning, linked to hamburger supplied to a certain fast-food chain.. That was the end of the "cheap beef" used by that chain, I guess. Was it the "pink slime" referenced here?
If you want real ground beef, and want to be absolutely sure of what you're getting, most butchers will take the chuck roast you pick out and bone and grind it for you.
They could call it liquid gold, as far as I'm concerned, as long as they label it and let me pick, instead of hiding behind the government and saying, "But the feds say it's ok". Since when do conservatives think that the government has all the answers? I'm a consumer. It's my money. I want to know.
And there is a difference between "it isn't reasonably possible to filter out all of the bad stuff, but we'll do the very best we can" (and) "we're just going to go ahead and add poop to your meat, but it'll be steam-cleaned poop, so no worries". This is the second, and it is not acceptable.
In 1993 there were some deaths resulting from E. coli poisoning, linked to hamburger supplied to a certain fast-food chain.. That was the end of the "cheap beef" used by that chain, I guess. Was it the "pink slime" referenced here?
Not sure. According to one report there were 20,000 pounds+ of E Coli laced beef after the ammonia sprayers were shut off for repair for 2 minutes, but that was just a few years ago. One thing it does prove is that there is E Coli (and poop) in the beef. It is unreasonable to think that it all came through in that 2 minutes.
If you want real ground beef, and want to be absolutely sure of what you're getting, most butchers will take the chuck roast you pick out and bone and grind it for you.
Thank you for your suggestion. I second your suggestion of having the butcher do it, and would add that instead of choosing to eat or feed my loved ones ammoniated trimmings, I'd add either TVP (textured vegetable protein) to the meat to stretch it, or (if soy is an issue in your family), oatmeal. Oatmeal does an admirable job of making ground beef go further. I have used it 1,000+ times.
There are lots of other things to add besides veins, connective tissue and ammonia, as well, such as:
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/stretching-ground-beef.htm
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/stretching-ground-beef-3.htm
http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/stretching-ground-beef-in-a-recipe/
http://frugalliving.about.com/od/foodsavings/qt/Stretch_Beef.htm
http://tastycheapskate.blogspot.com/2011/03/5-ways-to-stretch-ground-beef.html
I have an older (read: metal gears) Kitchen Aid stand mixer. Worth its weight in gold. The only attachment we don't have is the meat grinder. I am about to change that.
We eat a lot of game meat, mostly elk and pronghorn, and I do get some ground every year, but it isn't the most cost effective way to use the meat. Some ground in inevitable, as the bits are too small to do much else with.
But because they are both such lean meats, beef fat usually has to be added to elk/pronghorn ground for it to stick together, and that costs money at the butcher.
So, I'm going to learn to grind my own, for the fun of it. I see hand-grinders at the thrift store from time to time, and that may end up being my back-up option. I also see nice cuts for less than ground on the sales rack, but don't always want to fire up the grill. Now, I'm going to grind them.