A shocking piece of investigative journalism by the New York Times on Dec 30, 2009, revealed that a relatively new method of processing ground beef, by treating meat trimmings with elevated levels of ammonia, is not only being used in meat bought by many fast-food chains and grocery stores, but may not even destroy the E. coli and salmonella bacteria it claims to treat. According to the article, recent E. coli and salmonella contamination have been found in the ammonia-injected beef, raising questions as to the method’s safety and viability for the future.

Most consumers are not aware that, according to the NYT, beef products produced by the company Beef Products Inc. are injected with ammonia in an effort to eliminate E. coli contamination, and that these processed beef products have become a mainstay in many commercial ground beef products sold by large meat companies and fast food chains. The company came up with the ammonia-treatment method in order to make fatty meat trimmings, often from outer parts of the animal that are more likely to be contaminated, safe for human consumption. Approved by the USDA, the meat products are used not only for sale to the public, but also in the U.S. federal school lunch program that used an estimated 5.5 million pounds of the meat in 2008. Ground beef treated with ammonia is not labeled.

However, the New York Times found that upon investigation into industry and government records, E. coli has been found 3 times and salmonella 48 times since 2005 in Beef Products meat. Although Beef Products beef has not been linked to any outbreaks in the general public, the news is certainly liable to make consumers cast a skeptical eye at the ground beef or processed hamburger patties they consider buying.

While ammonia treatments can kill pathogens by raising the alkalinity level of meat, the treatment also causes an unpalatable odor and taste. In 2003, officials in Georgia returned almost 7000 pounds of the beef to Beef Products, believing the frozen meat to have been accidentally contaminated with ammonia. The officials claimed that the levels of ammonia in the meat were similar to levels that had sickened schoolchildren during contaminations in the past. The disagreeable odor and taste of the ammonia-treated meat may have led Beef Products to lower the levels of ammonia used in treating the beef, which could have led to less effective treatment of bacteria.

With deadly E. coli outbreaks appearing more frequently on the news in recent years, the average consumer is left with several choices. Buy organic or grass-fed beef? Become vegetarian? Grind your beef at home? Unfortunately, processed beef is also the cheapest and most convenient beef, and some households may not have a viable alternative.

With concerns about meat safety skyrocketing, what will you do to ensure you and your family stay healthy?