Meat, and all that rubbish!

We’re just about getting over the shock of having horse meat mixed in with our beef, and pork mixed with beef when it shouldn't be, when the news emerges that sausages aren't all they seem. Instead of the usual pork and cereal we have been eating bones and stuff.

Why am I not surprised to learn that suppliers are selling mechanically recovered residue, only changing the name so that it can legally be termed meat in the UK. Indeed, one manufacturer believes the product is widely used.

Content known as desinewed meat (DSM) was introduced in the UK in the nineties but a better description is a higher form of recovered meat retrieved from animal bones, similar in looks to mince and closer to meat than slurry.

I read this piece of news:

“the BBC has learned that across Europe many suppliers continue to produce desinewed meat using different names including "Baader meat" and "3mm mince". Baader meat is made using a machine from the Baader company in Germany and according to a spokesman, the device removes the membrane and the sinew and in the end "it is meat"! Suppliers that use the Baader system in Germany, the Netherlands, France and Spain all stated they believed their desinewed products are outside the EU ban and can count towards the meat content of sausages and other foods. In e-mails seen by the BBC, some of these companies say they are very keen to supply it to the UK.”

You have been warned, folks. If anything you buy is labelled Baader meat you know where it came from. Horse meat sounds good compared to this, providing the suppliers let us know. There was a hue and cry over horse meat but hardly anything has been said about this revolting sounding content in our food. Thank goodness for genuine butchers, is what I say, at least the're doing well out of the horse meat scandal.