showerbeers:emcum:caitygee:smallframe:chorkee:early-onset-of-night:

Say hello to mechanically separated chicken. It’s what all fast-food chicken is made from—things like chicken nuggets and patties. Also, the processed frozen chicken in the stores is made from it.

Basically, the entire chicken is smashed and pressed through a sieve—bones, eyes, guts, and all. it comes out looking like this.

There’s more: because it’s crawling with bacteria, it will be washed with ammonia, soaked in it, actually. Then, because it tastes gross, it will be reflavored artificially. Then, because it is weirdly pink, it will be dyed with artificial color.

It’s hard to argue that factory-processed-foods are as good for you as their natural counterparts, but the above statements are pretty misleading and in some cases actually wrong. 

• Mechanically Separated Chicken is not washed or soaked in Ammonia. Ammonia is not an approved food additive, and is on the same scale of toxicity as chlorine. 
• The entire chicken is not “smashed through a sieve”. The process is actually designed to remove bones and guts from the meat itself. (Admittedly, some bone does get through, which is why calcium content of mechanically separated meats is carefully regulated, and mechanically separated beef is not allowed as it would increase the risk of BSE, or “Mad Cow”)

Dear Internet: If you’re going to tell other people why the way they live their lives is wrong, at least do so with factual information. 

Oh, and because I’m not a complete wanker: Here are the sources that I attribute my statements to. List of Food Additives, Mechanically Separated Meats, USDA Definition of Terms. Oh, and finally, the article where that picture came from, explaining that Mechanically separating chicken involves the removal of bones.