Meat mixture sold by Taco Bell tests at less than 35% beef

See, The Badger Herald: Taco Bell: The real meat of the matter. But remember, it's going to take an expert to sift the binders from the meat and give measurable results that someone else may or may not find flawed. Also see, How Much Actual Beef Is in Taco Bell's 'Meat Filling'? | Breaking News.

News gets updated from time to time and measurable results could change. Everybody wants measurable results. And few are trained as experts to know whether the testing was flawed or not. The problem is one expert says one thing, and another expert finds a flaw in the testing.

When you buy a meat-containing taco, burrito, or other meat-containing item at any Sacramento area Taco Bell fast-food eatery, did you know that Taco Bell's meat mixture has been tested and found to contain less than 35 percent beef? And how do you know the testing was correct or not--unless you're allowed to look at the test results from primary sources?

According to a Sacramento Bee January 25, 2011 article from Associated Press, "Suit claims Taco Bell isn't accurately labeling meat," the lawsuit, seeking class-action status, has been filed on January 21, 2011 in the Central District of California by a law firm. Also check out today's Fox News article, Taco Bell Sued Over Meat That's Just 35 Percent Beef - FoxNews.com.

Basically, the law suit focuses on an accusation of false advertising. Taco Bell advertises its meat as "seasoned beef"  or "seasoned ground beef" in its various products that contain meat. However, testing shows that Taco Bell  restaurants use meat that contains binders and extenders. The lawsuit says that the ground beef products do not meet the minimum requirements set by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture to be labeled as 'beef.'

The law suit filed is "on behalf of aTaco Bell customer and California resident." The customer filing the lawsuit does not want any monetary damages. The individual asks the court to "order Taco Bell to be honest in its advertising," according to the Associated Press article in today's Sacramento Bee. The article did not specify what ingredients were used as extenders or binders.

How would you find out what products are in any given Sacramento area fast-food eatery's meat products? You could first check out the USDA or ask the restaurant manager to supply you with the ingredients listed in the beef, for those, perhaps who may have allergies to any given extender, binder, or filler. If the manager doesn't know, ask where the supplier of the meat products can be contacted.

You could call or email the supplier to any given Sacramento restaurant or fast-food eatery and find out where's the beef coming from and what's in it to extend, bind, or fill the product. Fast-food eateries often add fillers and extenders or binders to hold the meat product together or to help the meat have more volume so the servings can be extended to more people. There are various other reasons why binders, extenders or fillers are added to ground beef to hold it together or to make it weigh more.

The lawsuit filed three days ago sends a message to Sacramento and other California fast-food eateries to advertise on their menus exactly what binders and extenders are in the meat. That way, people allergic to the extenders or binders would know there's something in the beef, for example, various vegetable proteins, other than pure ground beef. Also the Sacramento Bee article did not define what specific, if any, natural seasonings might be in the meat.

Examples of additives in ground beef might be listed in future menus. But most restaurants/eateries do not list products on the menu that's in ground beef such as salt, monosodium glutamate, textured vegetable protein, or any other ingredient to which someone may have an allergy or adverse reaction.

Also, the article did not mention whether or not MSG (monosodium is added to any product). The goal of the law suit is to have ingredients listed when a restaurant/eatery advertises a product as ground beef. Or if a restaurant chooses not to list whether salt, natural seasonings by name, or MSG is added, the focus of that lawsuit is on honesty in advertising, primarily listing what is in the ground beef rather than just listed the words "ground beef" when less than 35 percent of ingredients in the meat product consists of ground beef.