Pink Fat: It's What's For Dinner

Today, the United States has 74 percent of its people over weight or with a BMI over 25. This fact is frightening to know and is getting worse every year.

About a month ago, big fast food restaurant chains said that they were going to stop using pink slime, boneless lean textured beef, on their menus. This pink slime is a inexpensive substitute for actual beef. This “beef” is mechanically gathered from the behind of the animal, which may be exposed to fecal matter. 15 percent of pink slime is actual beef; what are the other ingredients? They consist of fat, sinew, tough muscle tissue that is between bones, effluvia, bloody waste fumes, and worst of all, ammonia.

This is not even the worst part; the government bought 7 million pounds worth of it and gave it right to school cafeterias. The USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) stated that the recent events have strengthened the ground beef safety standards for schools.

I am a high school senior, and I eat lunch at my school often. When I heard about this, my stomach churned knowing that all the parents thinking their children are getting a quality lunch at school are not. This worries me on so many levels. If the public is just finding out about pink slime now, what else are the food companies slipping into our food that we do not know about? Also, this unhealthy substance is one of the causes of childhood obesity. With today’s on-the-go family life style and going to fast food restaurants for dinner, children get immersed into that kind of food and convenience.

In the end, all this comes down to family upbringing and the want or need to stay healthy. The pink slime conservancy is a sign that the United States needs to be more conscientious about what goes into our bodies and the bodies of the future generations. 

Editor's note: As part of a partnership with Whitnall High School, Greenfield Patch will be posting blogs and announcements written by WHS students through the end of the school year. All blogs and announcements have been approved by the student's teacher.