Is Fast Food Safe? Here's the scoop:

[bhaktajan]

Industrial Farm Animal Production

In the 1950s, the advent of nitrogen-based fertilizer allowed farmers to rapidly maximize their output. This was particularly true of corn crops. In 1940, a farmer could expect 70 to 80 bushels of corn per acre. Today, that number has reached 200 bushels. This corn, in turn, has been used to feed livestock and poultry for quick and efficient growth. In 2007, the U.S. produced 48.7 billion pounds of commercial red meat, 90.6 billion eggs and 8.1 billion chickens, according to the USDA.

About the Study

The study's findings are based on samples of 480 servings of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches and fries purchased from McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's chains. The authors, who were unpaid, purchased the samples from three restaurants per chain in six <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com<st1:place w:st=" /><st1:country-region w:st="on">U.S.</st1:country-region> cities: <st1:City w:st="on">Los Angeles</st1:City>, <st1:City w:st="on">San Francisco</st1:City>, <st1:City w:st="on">Denver</st1:City>, <st1:City w:st="on">Detroit</st1:City>, <st1:City w:st="on">Boston</st1:City> and <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Baltimore</st1:place></st1:City>. Once purchased, the samples were freeze-dried and tested for carbon and nitrogen isotopes over a two-year period.

Hamburgers

Based on the carbon isotopic signatures found in the sample meat, the study's authors argue that the cattle had been strictly confined and fed predominantly corn. Samples from Burger King showed the greatest variability, indicating that some cattle may have eaten natural vegetation or other feeds instead. The nitrogen isotopic ratios were much higher than ones found in grass-fed and free-range beef. The authors attributed these findings to feed produced with nitrogen fertilizer and severe containment conditions.

Chicken Sandwiches

The authors found widespread homogeneity of chicken samples across chains. The chickens used were predominantly corn-fed. While the chicken samples had lower nitrogen levels than beef, the authors argue that they remained high enough to demonstrate that the poultry had been raised in extreme confinement.

French Fries

Samples of French fries revealed that the restaurant chains are using one frying oil or a combination of oils despite claims stating otherwise. Wendy's, for example, claims their fries may contain one or more of canola, soy, cottonseed or corn oil. In fact, the study's findings pointed to a nationwide "corn-oil based protocol" for fries.

Is Fast Food Safe?

The study does not make any claims about the healthfulness of corn or nitrogen. To be clear, the consumption of animals that subsist on corn diets and have minimal nitrogen byproducts in their tissues has not been proven unsafe. The point of the study, says its authors, is to draw attention to the food production process.

What the Results Mean

In some ways, the results aren't very controversial. We already know that industrial farm animals subsist primarily on a corn diet and are kept in confined spaces. The results were uniform across geography and chains, indicating the same feed and confinement approaches.

 

But the results also showed that certain restaurants used different french fry oils than reported. Worse yet, the authors suggested that the nitrogen isotope signatures for certain meat products were consistent with such environments where animals had consumed their own waste.

What the Study Leaves Out

The study did not evaluate levels of hormones, antibiotics, heavy metals and pesticides. Some health experts argue that these substances, which are used in industrial farm animal production, pose a serious risk to public health.

 

A 2008 report issued by the Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production linked the rise of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria to the non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in farm animals. It also reported on previous findings that animals in confined settings are more likely to contract and spread a disease.

Criticism of the Study

Dr. Frank Monahan, a scientist at University College Dublin, called Jahren's approach scientifically sound, but he questioned the conclusiveness of the study's findings. The levels of nitrogen, he says, may not be directly linked to confinement practices.

 

Instead, they may reflect that most conventionally raised beef and poultry are given feed that was grown with nitrogen-enriched fertilizer. And while the high levels of carbon 13 indicate a diet abundant with corn, Monahan says the results are not as conclusive as the authors suggest.

Restaurant Policies

In the past, major restaurant chains have been resistant to disclose how their food is produced or agreeing to use suppliers that allow more freedom among animals.

 

In 2007, Burger King made a major move in that direction when it announced that 2% of its eggs would be "cage free" and 10% of its pork would be sourced from farms that permit sows to move inside pens instead of remaining in crates.

 

Wendy's does not provide information about its suppliers or food production practices. McDonald's declined to comment.

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What's Really In Your Fast Food?

A new report reveals how your favorite hamburgers, chicken sandwiches and fries go from farm to table.

may want to reconsider getting that double cheeseburger with fries.

A study released today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences contains controversial claims about menu items served at McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King.

Using a technique that identifies carbon and nitrogen isotopes in meat, co-authors A. Hope Jahren and Rebecca Kraft tried to determine the animals' diets and in what conditions they were raised.

 

Based on the high levels of carbon and nitrogen isotopes found in the meat products, the authors claim that the cattle and poultry were predominantly fed corn, which makes them as fat as possible in as short a time as possible, and were raised in extreme confinement.

In Depth: Where Does Your Fast Food Come From?

In an interview, Jahren, who is a geobiologist and professor at the <st1:place w:st="on"><ST1:PUniversity of <ST1:PHawaii</st1:place>, even suggested that the nitrogen isotopic signatures found in meat products were so high that they were consistent with environments where animals had consumed their own waste.

Burger King declined to comment on the study. A spokesman for Wendy's said the company has "very strict procedures in place" to protect animal welfare.

 

A spokeswoman for McDonald's declined to comment and instead referred to a statement issued by the American Meat Institute, a trade association.

Janet M. Riley, senior vice president of public affairs for AMI, said that carbon and nitrogen isotopes are naturally occurring and are expected to be found in the environment and humans. She also said that while the study's authors had called for greater transparency regarding information about livestock feeding and production practices, consumers "appear satisfied" with the amount of information currently available.

 

Where's The Beef?

Over a two-year period, the authors purchased 480 servings of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches and french fries at multiple chains in six cities across the countryand tested them for carbon 13 and nitrogen 15 isotopes, both of which have been used by scientists for decades to reveal clues about eating habits in both humans and animals.

Farmers use nitrogen-enriched fertilizer to rapidly maximize their output. This is particularly true of corn crops; in 1940 a farmer could expect 70 to 80 bushels of corn per acre. Today, that number has reached 200 bushels.

 

This corn, in turn, has been used to feed livestock and poultry for quick and efficient growth. In 2007, the <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">U.S.</st1:place></st1:country-region> produced 48.7 billion pounds of commercial red meat, 90.6 billion eggs, and 8.1 billion chickens, according to the USDA.

The authors also found widespread homogeneity of chicken samples across chains. The chickens used were predominantly corn-fed. While the chicken samples had lower nitrogen levels than beef, the authors argue that they remained high enough to demonstrate that the poultry had been raised in extreme confinement.

Samples of french fries revealed that the restaurant chains are using one frying oil or a combination of oils despite claims stating otherwise. Wendy's, for example, claims their fries may contain one or more of canola, soy, cottonseed or corn oil. In fact, the study's findings pointed to a nationwide "corn-oil based protocol" for fries.

"It would be too bad if this adds to public fears about corn," she says.

Dr. Frank Monahan, a scientist at University College Dublin, has used the same technique to compare the eating habits of grass-fed and conventionally raised beef in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Ireland</st1:place></st1:country-region>. While he called Jahren's approach scientifically sound, he questioned the conclusiveness of the study's findings.

The levels of nitrogen, he says, may not be directly linked to confinement practices. Instead, they may reflect the fact that most conventionally raised beef and poultry are given feed that was grown with nitrogen-enriched fertilizer.

 

And while the high levels of carbon 13 indicate a diet abundant with corn, Monahan says their values could have been much higher, which would provide convincing evidence that the animals had an exclusive corn diet.

This technique has been increasingly used in the past decade to analyze the eating patterns of animals that become consumer meat.

"Because the food chain has become so long now, and it's a global industry, we want to know the origin of our food as consumers," says Monahan. "Consumers nowadays want to know the story of their food."

Bob Goldin, executive vice president of the food industry consulting firm Technomic, says that's probably not the case with fast food customers.

Jahren and Kraft, a doctoral student at <st1:place w:st="on"><ST1:PJohns </ST1:PHopkins </ST1:PUniversity</ST1:P</st1:place>, conducted the research unpaid. Jahren says she is trying to shed light on a dearth of information about how a cow becomes a McDonald's quarter-pounder, for example.

"The information gap is really fascinating," says Jahren, who tried for two years without success to obtain information from Burger King, Wendy's and McDonald's about their suppliers and food production practices. McDonald's does not disclose its suppliers and Wendy's declines to do so, citing "competitive reasons."

 

[Deathless]

Yes, meat in general is bad for the human body. But it's especially bad when it's a) mass produced, b) filled with artificial hormones, and c) deep-fried for the obese masses.