June 02, 2011

• Still researching this (gagging as I do so.) Fairly comprehensive article Link to Cooking Issues blog The sites I've read seem to waffle around about transglutaminase--TG-- being safe enough; the concern is attaching bacteria-laden meat surfaces together or using old, nasty meat. However, given that TG is made from blood taken from either cows or pigs, and that animal blood can contain the prions of BSE, my question is why is TG product safety assumed simply because we have transglutaminase in our bodies? And no, I *don't* trust the FDA to oversee the production of a quality product. Most likely it's manufactured at a site in China--located in between the factory for contaminated milk and the one for poisonous dog food.
• This hit the news here about a month ago -- restarants and supermarkets are jumping all over themselves to state they don't and never will use transglutaminase. I'm not entirely sure we'd be able to tell if they have, though.
• EW. EW EW EW EW. That's truly disgusting. Who the heck comes up with an idea like this anyway? ew.
• I find it difficult to see this as any more disgusting than the consumption of muscles.
• What could possibly go wrong? "Recent studies suggest that tTG plays a role in inflammation, degenerative diseases and tumor biology."
• HA! I knew it. Just didn't get far enough on the search to find the goooood stuff. Thanks Dan.
• You glue me a fist full of shrimp onto a ribeye, we can talk.
• While I am always distrustful of big business and what it tries to get away with, here is the counter-argument. Written by the same author of the "Fairly comprehensive article" linked above. http://www.cookingissues.com/2011/05/20/the-trials-of-transglutaminase%E2%80%94the-misunderstood-magic-of-meat-glue/ On the one hand you have big business and on other lame fearmongering cheap journalism. I'm reminded of the newscaster on The Simpsons. Kent Brockman: "Hordes of panicky people seem to be evacuating the town for some unknown reason. Professor, without knowing precisely what the danger is, would you say it's time for our viewers to crack each other's heads open and feast on the goo inside?"
• Well, they do use superglue, to close cuts in living human flesh. Probably meat glue isn't being used there because it's too toxic. After the cross-linking is done the cook says it's good enough though.
• Nope, read your counter argument Toonces, still don't want to eat the shit. Notice how they mention that the EU has banned glue from blood, but no mention of the US. Why does anyone need the shit? If you're selling prime rib, fine, label as such and serve. If your selling glued together scraps and calling it prime rib, it's bullshit. Why is it so hard for the seller to let the consumer to know what they're getting? Perhaps because they're ripping people off for top dollar on lesser cuts?
• In other meat news: Meat Magazine Compares the Humane Society to Hitler
• Not so much Godwin's Law as Godwin's Shoehorn. Good effort. But on the plus side, the meat industry's trade magazine in question turns out to be called Meatingplace, so there's that.
• Hitler was a vegetarian. But so was Ghandi.
• Pink Slime For School Lunch: Government Buying 7 Million Pounds Of Ammonia-Treated Meat For Meals
• The Sliming: How processed beef trimmings got rebranded, again and again and again.