We Americans really love our beef. I mean REALLY love our beef!
But do you know where it comes from and if it is safe? Considering the average
American eats 71.2 pounds of red meat every year, you should know if it is
safe. Consumer Reports published an article in their October 2015 issue
titled How Safe is Your Beef? Get the full report here. Over a nine year period, there were nearly
80 reported outbreaks of E. coli that ultimately
resulted in five deaths. Keep in mind that these are just the reported
outbreaks. E. coli is not the only type of bacteria that has been seen in our
beef supplies either. Salmonella is the one of the most common bacteria
that causes food poisoning and beef is the fourth most common cause of an
outbreak.
Foodborne illnesses can come from many different types of food
including raw poultry, red meat, fish, eggs, unpasteurized milk, and even
vegetables that have been cross contaminated. Aside from fish and unpasteurized
dairy products, beef, of all types, causes the most food poisoning breakouts.
We typically eat our chicken, turkey, and pork well-done, so the
risk of getting sick from these types of meats is relatively low. This is not
the case with beef products because we prefer them closer to rare. Under-cooked
steaks can be a danger, but the real hazard is ground beef. Bacteria are
introduced at many different stages of processing and the packages you buy at
the store may have meat from hundreds of different cows.
Consumer Reports collected 458 pounds of ground beef from 26
cities across the country and conducted tests looking for the most common types
of bacteria found in beef as well as tested the bacteria’s resistance to
antibiotics. There are really two ends of the spectrum when it comes to how the
cows are raised: conventional and sustainable. See full report for the
story of their upbringing and click here to find what you should be looking for on the
labels.
The results of their testing are frightening. All inspected beef
exhibited bacteria that indicated some level of fecal contamination, including
E. coli. In addition, 20% was contaminated with C. perfringens, which causes
food poisoning, and 10% was contaminated with S. aureus, a bacteria that cannot
be killed through cooking and kills 11,000 people a year in the U.S., and 1%
was contaminated with salmonella. Conventionally produced meat was more likely
to have bacteria in general, but it was also twice as likely to have drug
resistant bacteria as more sustainably raise beef and three times more likely
than grass feed beef.
How can you lower your risk of exposure? Eat organic, grass fed
beef. Just remember, anything the cow consumes, you have the potential to
consume it too. We are what we eat and this applies to our cows too.
Conventionally raise cattle are typically fed a diet of corn and soybeans in
order to fatten them up faster than if they were pasture raised. The argument
for conventional techniques is that it is more cost effective and without
conventional practices there would not be enough available, affordable beef.
No matter where your beef comes from, you have a responsibility
as a consumer to ensure that you are handling the beef safely. Here are a few
tips to ensure safety:
§ Keep
the meat cold, no warmer than 37 degrees F.
§ Do not
allow the beef to touch other foods. Use separate plates and utensils.
§ Ensure
you cook it thoroughly (160 degree F).
§ Stay
clear of “rare” burgers when eating in a restaurant. Ensure you tell your
waiter that you want your burger cooked to 160.
§ If you
prefer to grind your own meat, clean appliances before and after use to
safeguard against contamination.
Resources
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2014). Foodborne illness, foodborne disease.Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/facts.html
Consumer Reports. (2015). When shopping for ground beef,
look for these labels.Retrieved from
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2015/08/shopping-for-ground-beef/index.htm
Molla, R. (2014, October 2). How much meat do Americans eat?
Then and now. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved
from http://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/how-much-meat-do-americans-eat-then-and-now-1792/
Rock, A. (2015). How safe is your ground beef? Consumer Reports, 80(10), 26 – 33.
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