The Truth Behind Mechanically Separated Chicken

One of the reasons I am writing this post is because I would not like to get sued by the food corporations. Secondly, I think it’s good to have a well rounded perspective. Gizmodo, has been following the story and they have a great interview with a food scientist, Daniel Fletcher.

First, let’s debunk the ammonia myth (“Because it’s crawling with bacteria, it will be washed with ammonia, soaked in it, actually.”)

Fletcher replies, “You don’t mix ammonia with food! That’s illegal! And it’s stupid. I’ve never seen anybody pull a stunt like that. These guys invest big money in that product, and would never do that.”

His strongest point about why we should use this process for meat is:

“If we’re going to kill an animal for food, we’re obligated to use the whole thing.”

I agree with him, but…after seeing this video on how the processing is done, I still think I’m going to stay away from chicken nuggets and processed chicken.

See the video after the jump:

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About the Author

Daniel

Daniel Gray is a Korean adoptee that returned to Korean in 2005 because he wanted to try and find his birth mother and to learn about Korean culture. He started a restaurant review blog in 2007, www.seouleats.com, that became a local and international hit. He and his blog has been featured in the New York Times, Monocle Magazine, The Kimchi Chronicles, Bizarre Foods, Rudy Maxa, Olive Magazine, Euronews and much more. He now is a partner at O’ngo Food Communications (www.ongofood.com), which is a culinary tourism and consulting company that offers Korean cooking classes and restaurant tours to travelers. Their food tours and cooking classes are ranked as one of the top attractions in Seoul according to tripadvisor. Daniel can be found at the links below or at Google+.