While having a heated debate over the merits of "pink slime" with a friend, she argued that the clorinated chicken is just as bad and is causing all kinds of health problems. I havn't heard anything about this so I decided to do some research. Unfortunately online sources seem sketchy and just hearsay. So I'm hoping someone on here can point me toward a reputable site with true information so I can learn about the process and answer any questions my customers might approach me with. Thanks!
Chlorine is routinely used in poultry production according to the USDA (I'm wrong sometimes, just wanted to be sure.) Perhaps the 20/20 segment was specifically addressing the bleach dip for extending shelf life beyond what is appropriate.
The chickens I got as samples were directly from a USDA stamped processor and I certainly smelled it. Also according to the USDA the ratio of organic matter (chickens, chicken waste, blood etc) to the chlorinated water is an important factor in neutralizing the chlorine smell and if this ratio is off (say not enough organic matter in the water) the smell can be detectable on the finished product especially to people with acute sense of smell
Man how can I defend poultry with info like that? I know it's making it safer - I'm sure the USDA wouldn't have otherwise .. but is there anything I can say to my friend or customers that may ask to reassure them that eating chlorinated chicken isn't going to harm them in the long term?
ya know it seems to be the trend that whenever a story makes the headlines those adversly affected by it tend to snap back at the media and blame them for the fallout created. The industry has to know that when these nasty sounding practices make the news (and they will sooner or later) the general public is going to FREAK! Seems like a pretty straight forward no-brainer to me. The media is just doing what they get paid to do. Without them we'd be like North Korea or something. You can't blame the public either for not wanting to buy this stuff. Ahhhh let see who's left to blame? Yup you guessed it! Our industry has punched itself in the face so many times I can't keep track. It's amazing we're still working! Then top it off with a study linking red meat and cancer risks. And who's the poor sap put on the spot by the consumer? Oh yah that'd be us lol! Man it's a damn tough racket ain't it????
I cannot speak to the health effects of chlorinated water in chicken, but I can say that there are producers out there that use completely different techniques. Pitman farms out of Petaluma, CA for instance uses a blast chiller the bring the body temp down after slaughter - way more sanitary, and the meat is much more tender b/c it does not contain any of the retained water found in the chlorinated ice bath process. There alternatives out there, and as customers learn more and more about where there food comes from and how it is processed they will be seeking out those alternatives.
