If you see this label, keep walking.

It seems like I keep writing about chicken. This time, I’m hot and bothered about Tyson’s antibiotic debacle. For those of you who don’t know what I am talking about: Tyson Foods, Inc., the company that manufactures all those chicken fingers and sells raw poultry in 2008 was sued for what some called questionable business practices. The gist: The company wanted to be able to say that it didn’t “raise” its chickens with antibiotics. In order to do that it injected all its eggs with antibiotics before they hatched so the chickens growing inside would get the antibiotics, but, at least according to semantics, they were “raised” without antibiotics. The worst part: The antibiotics it was allegedly using were the same ones that are used for human consumption, according to reports. Gentamicin, to be exact, according to a statement released on June 3, 2008 by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Undersecretary for Food Safety Richard Raymond.

Around the same time Tyson was sued by its competitors, bringing the issue into the public eye. When consumers heard about it, (and I have to admit, I didn’t hear about it at the time) they flipped. There are plenty of stories that will give you more background, but when it happened, a federal judge told Tyson it had 14 days to remove all “raised without antibiotics” claims from its packaging. The USDA disagreed with the label, it seemed. Consumers Union and the Center for Science in the Public Interest issued a joint letter decrying the injecting eggs practice, and supporting the USDA. Class action lawsuits followed. Eight suits were filed in five states by 22 plaintiffs. The cases were eventually combined into a single class action lawsuit. Which brings us to today.

This week a federal judge in Baltimore is reviewing the fairness of that lawsuit that will award up to $5 million in coupons to consumers — Tyson’s way of saying it’s sorry for the mislabeling snafu, according to the Baltimore Sun. From the story:

Under the proposal, U.S. consumers who bought Tyson chicken with the antibiotic-free labeling between June 19, 2007, when it began, and April 2009, when it was withdrawn, are considered members of the “settlement class,” eligible to apply for cash or coupon refunds. That means anyone who bought fresh, frozen or deli chicken during that time, Cornish hens or tenders.

You’ll get $5, $10, or $50 in coupons depending on if you have cash register receipts or not or if you’re willing to “declare under penalty of perjury” that you spent that kind of cash on Tyson products.

I don’t know about you, but I’m thinking that $5 million isn’t even a drop in the bucket compared to the harm the company probably did to our environment and cumulative health. I’m so disgusted I can’t stand it. I’m actually at a loss. Seems like every time I think it can’t get any worse, someone in mainstream food production does something like this and astounds me with their lack of care for humankind. I was already buying only Bell & Evans air-chilled chickens. What more can I do? Oh, wait. I’m doing it: Don’t buy Tyson chicken anymore. Why would you patronize a company that seemingly cares so little about you and your family?

Did you know about Tyson’s actions? Will you continue buying its products? Was the settlement large enough? Let’s hear it.

Well, there’s almost nothing more that I can say about the extremely disturbing story that was in The New York Times: E. Coli Path Shows Flaws in Beef Inspection. You’ve probably read it or seen a friend’s Facebook post about it. The well-researched and achingly depressing story starts out with a woman — a dancer — who is now paralyzed from the waist down because she ate a hamburger. Then it explains how that hamburger was made, and why that process is a flawed one. I could go through the story paragraph but paragraph to summarize, but I don’t have to. The Times sums it up best pretty high in the story: “…tracing the story of her burger, through interviews and government and corporate records obtained by The New York Times, shows why eating ground beef is still a gamble. Neither the system meant to make the meat safe, nor the meat itself, is what consumers have been led to believe.”

I will highlight one part of the process, though: The fact that the $1.99 pound of beef you buy is actually comprised of trimmings that come from multiple slaughterhouses in multiple states and countries — some of which has been soaked in ammonia and all of which was possibly contaminated with feces. “Federal inspectors based at the plant are supposed to monitor the hide removal, but much can go wrong. Workers slicing away the hide can inadvertently spread feces to the meat, and large clamps that hold the hide during processing sometimes slip and smear the meat with feces, the workers and inspectors say.” This feces is the main culprit in E. coli cases, which causes stomach and intestinal distress, and can lead to death in some cases. Uggg.

What’s even worse is that even if you cook beef to the proper temperature, which is 160 degrees, you’re not guaranteed to kill all the E. coli. And even if you did, you may have transferred it to your salad inadvertently when you were preparing it. E.  coli is like a cockroach: It’s hard to kill. Plus, it’s so virulent that all it takes for you to get sick is a few cells left on a cutting surface, sink, or counter.

While all this is enough to make anyone want to be a vegetarian, for most of us, it’s just not possible. There are ways, however, to avoid getting sick. Here are some tips to cut down on the amount of feces in your chopped beef.

1. Buy Grass-Fed Beef. Notice I didn’t just say organic. Yes, it’s more expensive, but those cows who are fed grass or forage have less E. coli in their systems. Grain feeding, according to one study, contributes to the growth of E. coli. And that’s coming from the USDA and Cornell University.
2. Get a Grinder. Beef isn’t inherently dangerous. It’s the meat grinding process, which adds tiny pieces of fat, trimmings, and leftovers to the mix. Buy your own food processor and some beef and you know exactly what’s in your hamburgers. (Of course, you’ll need to take the same cooking and handling precautions that you would with any meat.)
3. Use a Thermometer. Beef might look done, but unless you check the temperature, you really can’t be sure. Meat thermometers are inexpensive, and don’t take a lot of time. Stick it in, if it says 160 degrees, you’re done.
4. Get Some Bleach. My organic mommies are going to disagree with this one, but remember, this blog is Natural as Possible. If you’re goingto have raw meat in your kitchen on a regular basis, you have to protect yourself. Bleach is one of the things that has been found to kill E. Coli. Obviously, you’re not going to spray your meat, but you should wash down counters and cutting boards–anything that may have been contaminated.
5. Patronize a Local Butcher. If you don’t have the time or the stomach to grind your own beef, your local butcher (as well as stores like Whole Foods) can do it right in front of you, often for no additional cost. I get my ground beef (the hubby loves meat sauce) from Whole Foods, and it only costs me $2.99 per pound. Not bad for grass-fed meat.

My choice: Skipping the burgers all together. I’m lucky, though. I was never a burger lover save for an annual All American Burger run. It’s o.k., though. From now on I’ll just stick with the fries.

• Plastic wrap: It’s gotten safer over the past decade. Prior to 2006, plastic wrap contained phthalates. They don’t anymore, according to the American Chemical Council. And it doesn’t contain BPA — at least well-known plastic wrap doesn’t. But it is, as the Glad folks say, made from polyethylene, which is not recyclable.

• Wax paper: According to the UK Food Standards Agency, which is like our FDA, 42 out of 64 samples of wax paper tested contained mineral hydrocarbons that included white mineral oils, paraffin waxes, microcrystalline waxes and petroleum. The study found that even though those waxes did tend to leach into foods, they were within acceptable limits. Harumph. I don’t like that idea — acceptable limits.
• Aluminum foil: Take your pick. Aluminum has been linked to a host of diseases including Alzheimer’s. I didn’t realize how dangerous it can be — especially for children — until I started researching this blog post. According to our own U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, high levels of aluminum may be linked to brain and bone diseases. Newborn animals exposed to the metal “appeared weaker and less active…[and] some movements appeared less coordinated when their mothers were exposed to large amounts of aluminum during pregnancy and while nursing.” (Yes, according to the same source, aluminum can find its way into breast milk.)

So what did I do? I went with the unbleached wax paper bags that I bought at Whole Foods last week. It wasn’t a perfect choice, but definitely the lesser of all evils.