Potted meat food product

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Hormel Foods “Potted meat food product” served fresh from the can.

Potted meat food product, or simply potted meat, is a canned meat product manufactured by several companies in the United States, most notably Hormel, Armour Star, and Libby's. Because of its availability in small three-ounce cans, and because it is generally consumed with crackers, another food that has a long shelf life, it is popular with military personnel as well as backpackers and campers. A large amount of potted meat has been sent in "care packages" to U.S. military personnel stationed in Iraq^{[citation needed]}. Most potted meats (except Libby's version) contain no pork, which the U.S. military has prohibited from being sent to military personnel stationed in Muslim countries (such as Iraq), and the three-ounce size makes it easy and convenient for an individual to consume with no leftover to spoil.

1 Reputation
2 Ingredients
3 References
4 Links

[edit] Reputation

Potted meat's reputation is tainted by the inclusion of the words "food product" in the name (after the word "meat") and the inclusion of mechanically separated chicken as a primary ingredient, also called "mechanically separated poultry". Mechanically separated poultry is a paste-like poultry product made by forcing crushed bone and tissue through a sieve or similar device to separate bone from tissue. Mechanically separated poultry has been used in poultry products since 1969 after the National Academy of Sciences found it safe for use. On 3 November 1995, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a final rule in the Federal Register (see 60 FR 55962) on mechanically separated poultry, stating that it was safe to use without restrictions.^[1] However, it must be labeled as "mechanically separated chicken or turkey" in the ingredient statement. The final rule became effective on 4 November 1996.

[edit] Ingredients

Armour Star: Mechanically separated chicken, beef tripe, partially defatted cooked beef fatty tissue, beef hearts, water, partially defatted cooked pork fatty tissue, salt, and less than 2 percent: mustard, natural flavorings, dried garlic, dextrose, sodium erythorbate, and sodium nitrite.

Hormel: Beef tripe, mechanically separated chicken, beef hearts, partially defatted cooked beef fatty tissue, meat broth, vinegar, salt, flavoring, sugar, and sodium nitrite.