There's probably not been as much debate about how and what American's eat since Upton Sinclair wrote "The Jungle". As evidence, there's the locavore and slow food movements, popular books like "The Omnivore's Dilemna" and "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollan, and the great (and recently released on DVD) documentary "Food Inc."
There's a scene in "Food Inc." that documents the beef industry's answer to multiple recalls stemming from rampant and deadly E. Coli contamination, the result of feedlot overcrowding and insufficient cleanliness regulations (i.e., cow manure gets mixed into the meat). The industry developed a filler composed of ammonia and beef scraps that's mixed into the ground beef. Obviously, it's an indictment of the beef industry that they would choose to add ammonia to the ground beef rather than eliminate the cause of the E. Coli contamination itself.
Having recently watched the movie, this article in today's New York Times caught my eye: "After Delays, Vaccine to Counter Bad Beef Is Being Tested". The industry is now testing injected vaccines to reduce the E. Coli contamination levels.
In an effort to counter the threat, two vaccines have been developed commercially. One, made by a Minnesota company called Epitopix, received preliminary approval from the Agriculture Department in March, meaning it can be sold while research continues. Dr. James D. Sandstrom, general manager of Epitopix, said that about 300,000 head of cattle will get the vaccine in the coming months as part of a series of large trials.
A second vaccine has been developed by Bioniche Life Sciences, a Canadian company. It was approved for use in Canada last year and is awaiting approval in the United States.
Both vaccines spent years tangled in Washington red tape, largely because they straddle the border between animal medicine and human health.The large-scale study...is being coordinated and paid for by Cargill, the food giant that is the biggest producer of ground beef in the country.
I suppose one way to address the problem with E. Coli contamination is to load the meat up with ammonia and vaccines and later face whatever human effects occur as a result.
Another approach might be to address the abhorrent conditions in commercial slaughterhouses that promote E. coli contamination.
Guess which approach costs less.
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