Letter to the Editor

To the Editor:

Certain major media outlets have vilified Lean Finely Textured Beef over the past several weeks. This inaccurate publicity is a disservice to consumers and the beef industry.

Lean Finely Textured Beef, inappropriately referred to as pink slime by sensationalistic reporters, is a healthy, safe source of lean protein previously added to most 90 percent lean and above ground beef. It is produced when steaks and roasts are cut to specification. The by-product is wholesome trimmings that are subjected to an approved process that separates the lean from the fat. In some cases, a puff of ammonium hydroxide gas is applied to the product to reduce the potential for bacteria. This is not the household ammonia cleaning agent, as misrepresented by some media. The same process is used in a variety of other processed foods, including bread, pudding and cheese.

Leading food scientists, USDA officials and academic institutions across the country support Lean Finely Textured Beef as a safe, wholesome and nutritious product.

The consequences of allowing media hype to trump the science behind this product are worrisome.

Economists predict lean ground beef prices will move higher as companies producing Lean Finely Textured Beef shut down plants and the product is no longer available. The alternative will require importing more lean trim from outside the U.S.

My family has been in the cattle ranching business for several generations. We're producing more beef from fewer cattle than ever before, thanks in part to the technology involved in making Lean Finely Textured Beef. I'm confident of serving this safe, wholesome, nutritious beef product to my family. You should be, too.

Kyra O'Brien

Hepler