(DES MOINES) – Gov. Terry E. Branstad today released the following statement upon learning of Beef Products, Inc.’s plans to permanently close three plants, including one in Waterloo that employs more than 200 Iowans:
“This is a sad day for the state of Iowa. The fact that a false, misleading smear campaign can destroy a company’s reputation overnight should disturb us all. My office will never stop fighting for every single job in this state, and I continue to hope that as consumers learn about this safe, healthy and lean food, they will understand what a great product lean, finely textured beef truly is.
“Unfortunately, we have learned that what a ruinous smear campaign accomplishes overnight can take years to correct. I want those workers who now face the daunting task of finding a new job to know that my administration will always fight for them. Today they go home to their families and will soon be without a job, all because some media on the coasts decided to unfairly and viciously smear the product they so proudly produced.
“Our thoughts and hearts go out to the people at BPI, Inc. We continue to stand with you, and will always do so proudly.”
14 thoughts on “Governor Branstad issues statement on BPI’s permanent closures”
I am not taking this story so lightly anymore.
It is true that PINK SLIME comment is a smear campaign that was started by ABC News. 52 times in 2 weeks the term was used on the 6 PM news. Also ABC withheld information about the use of food grade ammonia in there news story and that the FDA had approved it’s use after careful study back in 1974. They purposely never reported that this is food grade ammonia and much different from the ammonia that we find in common household cleaners. Or that the human body produces it’s own ammonia.
No, this story was done to make people think that ingesting harmful ammonia by eating this meat and it was bad for them. It worked too because BPI’s food sales has plummeted.
This abuse of media power has now cost 700 families in Iowa there jobs.
After reading up on how and why this story made the news, and how safe the use of food grade ammonia is I completely understand Governor Branstad’s anger.
The simple truth is that food grade ammonia hydroxide has been used by the food industry for decades to protect us from bad bacteria getting into our food supply.
We the people have been misled and outright lied to by ABC news. I am not a lawyer or know what the legality is but if I was one of he 700 families that had my life turned upside down because of this dishonest news story I would be seeking legal advice to seek a suit against ABC News.
The 1st Amendment guarantees free speech but it don’t protect you from libel lawsuits.
There’s no such thing as ‘food grade ammonia.’ The human body produces it, sure. Ever changed a baby’s diaper?
Read this.
http://www.foodinsight.org/Resources/Detail.aspx?topic=Questions_and_Answers_about_Ammonium_Hydroxide_Use_in_Food_Production
Sorry but you people that rag that this is “pink slime” are clueless. Yes, a small amount of amonia gas is used in this process in the high speed spin process to eliminate e-colie. (sp?) It doesn’t have any effect on the end product.
I like doing burgers on the grill. Again, this product has been safe and very inexpensive for over 20 years.
220 Iowa Workers in Waterloo are now out of work because of ABC news and a smear campain about a product that is whole beef that you have eaten for 20 years. (Have you ever eaten grissle that is included in your Ribeye?) Yea, some of that my be included in this ground beef, but the spin process makes it fine textured. It is all natural.
You whiners better be prepared for your “ground beef” at the store to rise from $1.29 per pound at the store to who knows, maybe $3.00.
John, I’m not sure where you buy your ground roadkill, but ground beef already costs about $3.00 per pound. The industry says removing pink slime will divert about 12% of the meat from the human consuption stream. Price is very elastic for meat–when price goes up, fewer people will buy it, causing the price to go down.
And some stores will still carry LFTB so the consumer will still have a chance to purchase the ‘trimmings’. Other stores, like Fareway, carry ground beef that does not have the ammonia-laced additive. In fact, what they call ‘our own’ ground beef’ is ground right in front of you. Not an ammonia bottle in sight!
Give consumers clear choices. Honest labelling. Let the market prevail!
If you think pink slime is bad you should see what is in hotdogs or lunch meat. We eats lots of stuff we don’t know about and seem to live through it. Is it healthful?? Probably not but we can digest it.
Well there you go, learn something new everyday thanks to the give and take in these blogs.
Bummer, I have been eating ammonia treated hamburger? I don’t see that as a smear campaign. It is just knowledge about how this beef was being processed. Because this has been made public doesn’t make it a smear campaign.
I would not have had a clue if NIT hand not posted this article about Governor Branstad concerns and people didn’t blog about the pros and cons.
I appreciate Governor Branstad’s compassion for the workers but I don’t appreciate not having the knowledge about the way this hamburger has been processed.
Thanks NIT for this article. I don’t want any kind of product that has ammonia or any substance put in. I work hard at eating only food that has not been tampered with by man.
The truth came out about how Big Beef is trying to extract every piece from a cow–trimmings, skin scrapings, and other bits that used to go for dog food. BPI found a way to douse it with ammonia to make it inhospitable to living organisms. I, and most consumers, thought ground beef was beef that was ground–not treated with ammonia. The fact that it was on the market for 25 years is no excuse. Is it safe? I don’t know–what’s the daily maximum dose of food-grade ammonia. Is it wholesome? Absolutely not.
The truth came out over 100 years ago. It has always been true, nothing on the carcass is wasted. Maybe because I was surrounded by the Union Stock Yards in Chicago, it was common knowledge since everyone worked there.
Try reading the list of what is in your foods. Most of it is high tech chemistry, designed to make the food either last longer, or appear appetizing. It’s been that way almost all my life.
Yes. Get knowledgable about what you eat. Read the package of ground beef. Contains: beef. Nowhere does it say ‘ammonia.’ Why not? Because the producers of pink slime got the FDA to declare that ammonia is a ‘processing agent’, not an ingredient. Even though the ammonia remains with the product, it is not labeled as being in the product. I’m curous to know how pink slime will be labeled now. Contains: ground beef, lean finely textured beef. or Contains: ground beef, ammonium hydroxide.
Does that mean you will not want cheese, breads, soups, soft drinks, dairy, rice cakes, breakfast cereals, cider, energy drinks, or canned veggies?
They are all produced with some sort of ammonia. Why? Because it is often considered a “processing aid,” which is not required by U.S. regulators to be included on food labels. It creates an environment that is not friendly to bacteria such as E.coli.
Anonymous,
You have no clue about what you are talking about in your post. This is ground beef, plain and simple and with choices of 80%, 90% and 95% lean. (how would you like it?) And, it is / was a less expensive way to process this meat. Now, we can buy a product from our local shop at a much higher price and we are not insured that it is safe and no insurance of how lean it is. This product has been sold to the public for 25 years. Yes, this was a smear campain. I can’t believe your ignorance and lack of compassion for Iowa Workers!
So how is it not safe? The pink slime was only a small percentage of ground beef? I think you are the ignorant one.
People don’t know about all of the strange things companies do to the food they eat. This was no smear campaign, simply telling people the truth about what they eat. I eat anything so it doesn’t bother me but people have the right to know and make choices despite what the govenor thinks.