Are you aware of what your kids are being served and eating?
On Friday the 9th of March, I read the following article on “Pink Slime” (http://www.theblaze.com/stories/usda-buys-7-million-pounds-of-pink-slime-for-school-lunches/) and decided it was time to ask the Georgia Department of Education if “Pink Slime” was being served in our schools.
The Dear Dr. John Barge email, providing information on “Pink Slime” and asked one simple yes or no question -
“Does Georgia allow “Pink Slime” to be used in its school lunches in the public school system?”
Friday afternoon I received a response and was redirect to Nancy Rice, Director of School Nutrition for the Georgia Department of Education.
Monday the 12th, I had yet to receive an answer.
Tuesday the 13th, I responded to the redirect email provided by the AskDOE Manager, letting her know I had yet to receive an answer and me and 2900 friends on Facebook were anxiously awaiting. Within 30 minutes my email was directed to the Director of Business Operations and Ms. Rice, letting me know that they would contact me as soon as possible. (I love the power of social media!)
An hour later Ms. Rice responded that she had delegated this response to Sommer Delgado, Communications Project Manager School Nutrition Program for the GA DOE. After receiving the response from Ms. Rice, Ms. Delgado responded -
“Yes, I was out of the office Friday and Monday, so we are working today to compile an answer ASAP.”
I anxiously awaited my “compiled “yes or no” answer”, and received it! At 2:46 pm from Ms. Delgado responded with….
Dear Ms. Lisabeth Carter:
Thank you for sending your questions concerning beef products served in Georgia’s school lunches. We assure you that just like any parent buying food at a grocery store or a restaurant, schools rely on the federal government to inspect and certify the safety of foods they purchase. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), after consultation with the Food and Drug Administration, has determined that the use of ammonium hydroxide in the processing of Lean Finely Textured Beef (LFTB) is safe. Even so, beef containing LFTB must meet federal food safety requirements and undergo food safety inspections, which includes stringent pathogen testing.
According to the USDA, LFTB has been allowed as a component of ground beef purchased by USDA for distribution through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). The maximum allowable percentage of LFTB that may be formulated into single servings of the ground beef purchased for the NSLP is 15 percent, which is similar to the composition found in many commercially available ground beef products. In fact, industry experts have estimated that about 70 percent of the ground beef sold in grocery stores, restaurants and food service establishments contain LFTB; however, manufacturers are not required to label a product as containing LFTB.
Additional information on this product or product specific inquiries should be directed to BPI at http://www.beefproducts.com/.
You may also see further information from The American Meat Institute at http://www.meatami.com/ht/display/ReleaseDetails/i/76164 .
Please feel free to contact us with any further comments or inquiries.
Sincerely,
Sommer Delgado
Communications Project Manager
School Nutrition Program
Georgia Department of Education
1662 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
Now, if you read Ms. Delgado’s response, you’ll notice she does NOT answer the question. So, I asked again.
Ms Delgado,
Thank you for your response, however I don’t need an education in pink slime, I’m fully aware of what it is and what distributors include it in their product. Costco, Publix, McDonalds and Fresh Market have all banned and pledged NOT to use “LFTB” in their products.
My simple question is and was – Is “LFTB” aka “Pink Slime” used in the ground beef our children eat at school in the State of Georgia. Yes or No.
I can control where my children eat and what beef I purchase, but I can’t at school. So I need to know, yes or no.
I’m not concerned with or appreciate a marketing response on what someone within the FDA believes is okay or safe. I’m concerned about the health of my children and other children in Georgia.
Please respond accordingly.
Liz Carter
Of course, at this point I was expecting a direct response from the State of Georgia, and I didn’t get one. Ms Delgado promptly replied with -
Dear Ms. Carter,
To quantify how much of a particular product purchased by USDA is served in specific school districts is difficult to measure and depends upon a case by case basis. To get the most accurate response, you will have to contact your child’s school district to determine their beef suppliers and if they ordered USDA commodity beef products.
Please feel free to contact us if you need any further assistance.
Sincerely,
Sommer Delgado
Communications Project Manager
School Nutrition Program
Georgia Department of Education
Are we having fun yet? Is it really that difficult to give an honest and direct answer to parents? Sarcasm is dripping off my finger tips at this point, now I understand why our school system in Georgia is lacking. Could it be the bureaucracy or ammonia products? Still no response, no yes or no answer.
From all of this, one can only presume that yes, Pink Slime, is provided to individuals who eat ground beef approved by the nutrition department within the Georgia Department of Education, which was approved by the USDA. Which means…if you have a child or you consume ground beef served at a Georgia Department of Education elementary school, middle school, high school, college and university, yes, you are consuming beef scraps that are first heated to release fat, then treated with AMMONIA, ground into Pink Slime and mix into ground beef…just to allow the distributor of food to make a few more dollars, while not having to disclose the use of the ammonia mixer.
With all the fuss lately from the Federal Government and First Lady about what our kids eat for lunch, how could this be? And why would the USDA wave the requirement to label the inclusion of “LFTB” or “Pink Slime” in ground beef and say it’s not necessary to notify parents that the food served at schools contain “LFTB”…Fast food companies now have to put calories on labels, but don’t have to disclose the use of byproducts treated with ammonia!!!
Time for action -
Please, contact your US Representatives and Senators today – ask them to override a misguided USDA policy and force disclosure of “Pink Slime” and then contact your State Department of Education and demand they STOP using “Pink Slime” in food served to our children.
More information and another information article on Pink Slime on Fox -(http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/03/12/pink-slime-is-good-for-americas-schoolchildren-manufacturers-claim/?test=latestnews)
