When animals are slaughtered and processed (the meat is cut up and packaged), several dangerous elements come into play. The first is the presence of fecal matter from slaughtered animals, which can contaminate meat with high levels of bacteria such as E. coli. Other sanitation lapses can also contaminate food, as can other animal diseases like salmonella and campylobacter. Another food safety hazard is the risk from mad cow disease (a key step to preventing humans from contracting the disease is the proper removal of risky nervous system materials from the beef supply). And in addition to these food safety risks, the use of hazardous machinery and sharp knives can injure workers when mistakes are made. Food Safety These unacceptable levels of contamination are caused by the filthy conditions in which conventional food animals are raised, as well as the high speed at which meat is processed. In order to maximize profits, meat processors have continually increased the speed of their production lines. Twenty years ago, meatpacking plants slaughtered about 175 cattle an hour, but, due to increased line speeds, today plants can slaughter as many as 400 cattle per hour6. In order to assure the safety of the meat supply, processors must make efforts to keep feces from spreading from the animals' intestines or hides onto the tables and tools for butchering, along with the meat itself. But because the production lines are forced to move so quickly, it is exceedingly difficult to butcher the carcasses with the care necessary to prevent this kind of contamination. The result is meat contaminated with bacteria that cause foodborne illness. The US continues to experience periodic outbreaks of foodborne illness and large recalls of contaminated meat. In 2002, ConAgra was forced to recall 19 million pounds of beef produced at its Greeley, Colorado, processing facility after meat contaminated with E. coli killed a woman and sickened 35 others. By the time the meat was recalled, about 80% of it had already been consumed7. Out of all foods, ground beef is the leading source of E. coli infections in the US8. The USDA publishes meat recalls issued voluntarily by companies, many of which are classified as Class I recalls, or those which are intended to notify the public about "a health hazard situation in which there is a reasonable probability that eating the food will cause health problems or death"9. These recalls can range in size from 100 pounds to several hundred thousand pounds of product. In 2008, the USDA published the largest meat recall in history: 143 million pounds of beef. This particular recall centered on beef that was not likely to cause illness and much of which was likely consumed by the time the recall was initiated. However, recall was initiated because of violations of animal care regulations taking place at the Hallmark Meat Packing Company in Chino, California, from where the meat originated. This incident spurred remarks from the head of the Senate Agricultural Committee to encourage a tightening of the laws for slaughterhouses10. In 2007, two other major meat recalls occurred. United Food Group issued a recall of 5.7 million pounds of fresh and frozen beef11 and Topps Meat Company issued a recall of 21.7 million pounds of beef12. Both were a reaction to possible E.Coli contamination. Meat Inspection In 1996, the USDA introduced a new meat inspection program called the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system. This system was intended to modernize meat inspection and introduce testing for the bacteria that make people sick. Unfortunately, HACCP has some major shortcomings. The HACCP system allows many inspection tasks to be carried out by the meat companies themselves, and actually reduces the involvement of USDA inspectors in the process13. This is highly problematic, not least because meat companies (driven only by the desire to profit) are unlikely to slow or stop production in order to deal with a problem or pull potentially contaminated meat from the line. Under HACCP the USDA has actually discouraged its inspectors from stopping production lines when they suspect contamination. In one USDA memo, the agency stated that inspectors would be held responsible for halting production unless there was absolute evidence of product contamination, an unfair burden to put on inspectors charged with the task of evaluating meat that's speeding down a production line14. Another important shortcoming of the current inspection system is the USDA's lack of authority to order product recalls or to issue fines when companies persistently violate food safety rules. Upon discovery of contaminated meat, the USDA cannot demand that a company recall its products and only has the power to consult with a company about how they should handle the situation15. This slows down the recall process, and allows for unsuspecting consumers to buy and eat contaminated products even though authorities are aware of the contamination. Similarly, the USDA can not shut down a plant that does not meet sanitation requirements and as a result there are often lengthy delays between the discovery of unsanitary processing plants and action taken to improve their conditions. In 2002, Public Citizen and the Government Accountability Project discovered that even after repeatedly testing positive for salmonella contamination, several ground beef processing plants were allowed to continue to sell meat for several months before steps were taken to clean up their facilities16. Worker Safety Although meat processing is a difficult and dangerous occupation, precautions can be taken to minimize the threats to worker safety. Among the most important safeguards is to set reasonably-paced production line speeds so that workers are able to process meat without putting themselves or their coworkers at risk of injury. However, in order to maximize profits, meat processing companies continue to maintain unreasonably fast line speeds, thereby jeopardizing the safety of both workers and the food supply. Time for Change What You Can Do Fortunately, there are many sustainable farmers and ranchers throughout the US that care about where their animals are processed. So if you buy directly from a farmer or rancher, he or she will be able to tell you exactly where the meat was processed, and what kind of practices that plant uses.
Page last updated September 2009 Related information: Sources
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