The globalization of food

[seasidemike]

I am not sure how much media attention this has received over in America, but over the past number of weeks there has been a major issue on this side of the pond with regards to the testing of beef and the finding of horse meat in beef labeled products.



It all actually started here in Ireland when testing found traces of horse meat in Tesco brand hamburgers. The meat was traced to a supply in Poland and from there a major investigation started up.



Food products were being found all over Europe with horse meat in it anywhere from small traces to in some cases 100%, all labeled as pure beef.



It has extended and now in South Africa they are finding ‘beef’ products with both buffalo and donkey meat in it.



Now, there have been loads of jokes posted about the topic, and I am one who enjoys some of the humor such as I went to my freezer to get a Tesco burger, and when I opened the door, ‘they were off’.. and stuff like that.



But under the humor there is a serious issue, trust.



When you buy something in the supermarket and check the label, the expectation is that what is on the label must represent the product you are consuming. However, with the globalization of the food chain, and the introduction of distributer and cross docking distribution chains, and different local regulations, I ask the question; can we trust what we are eating? What else are consuming without knowing it?



With the pressure from consumers to have cheap available food, what short cuts are being taken to give consumers what they want and still for companies to make a profit?



In Ireland since this scandal has happened, purchases and local town butchers have increased by 20%, which of course is great for the local butcher.



The more and more food is imported, exported, shipped and mass produced, can we really know what we are eating?

 

[DrLeftover]

Not every culture is opposed to having horse/mule/donkey etc, on the menu.



But either way, it should be labeled as such.

 

[Evil Eye]

But either way, it should be labeled as such.

Indeed.

Maybe introduce some more oversight, create a few jobs that way.

The more and more food is imported, exported, shipped and mass produced, can we really know what we are eating?

If you didn't kill and cook it yourself, you can't be sure of what you're eating. (Or if you were there watching someone else do it, but that's besides the point.)

Since it's not really feasible to do that every time you want a burger, we don't really have much of a choice. We can either put our trust in the people selling us our food, or we can grow it ourselves. And it's pretty easy to see which takes the least effort.

 

[Sk8]

Oversight is more akin to a band-aid than anything. In the US, we certainly have had our share of food related incidences which related in deaths, sickness and more because of poor shipping and handling of food products and cross contamination: these things happen. The secondary issue, which is more of the primary issue, that comes from having mislabeled food is difficulty of tracking the animals which people are consuming. There is mental mapping of certain areas which people associate to have ailing animals they slaughter for butcher. When you think about it, thinking your eating blind, stumbling, old, arguably half dead animals with diseases isn't the ideal hamburger you may have been looking forward to after all.



Globalized food certainly has its flaws, especially in the tracking of where it has come from and been (let alone what it is). Incidentally, while oversight is just a band-aid, more management and organization of distribution and tracking of distributors would definitely not hurt. Typically, we want to know what we're putting in our mouths; unless, of course, we don't want clarification on the mystery meat ... Sometimes it is better to not know. Somethings, that is.

 

[Sk8]

Indeed, I also presume you freeze the meat for thirty days before consumption?

 

[seasidemike]

Not every culture is opposed to having horse/mule/donkey etc, on the menu.



But either way, it should be labeled as such.

This is true, but the problem is not just around the acceptance of this it is about quality control.



Across Europe the beef industry is heavily controlled with all meat being required to be fully traceable which comes from back when there was the serious issue of BSE (Mad Cow Disease).



If horse meat is now in our food, not only is there an issue of labeling, but a total breakdown of quality control.

Where were these horses slaughtered?

What were they fed?

Why were they slaughtered? (were they sick?, someone’s pet?)

Where and how did they enter the food chain?



There are all sorts of issues this opens up.