USDA Says Cow’s Heart and Tongue Are OK in Ground Beef

According to Food Safety News, the United States Department of Agriculture has okayed the use of cow’s tongue and heart in ground beef.

Since 1981, the Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service had held that cow’s heart, tongue, and organs were “not acceptable” in chopped beef, ground beef, or hamburger” because consumers wouldn’t expect to find them there.

However, in July of last year the USDA apparently had a change of heart and now allows these body parts to be used in “unlimited quantities, ending an almost 40-year prohibition.

Ground beef is nothing short of disgusting. In fact, The Washington Post reports that “meat patties aren’t just made from the muscle tissue of a single animal, but from the fibers of as many as a hundred cows, or even more. Yes, the meat of a hundred animals may be in your burger.

And let’s not forget the suffering cows endure before they are brutally slaughtered. By the time they reach the kill floor, many are injured or lame. The vast majority spend their miserable lives on factory farms treated as nothing more than meat-producing machines.

Grossed out? There’s never been a better time to protect animals and your own health by ditching meat in favor of plant-based alternatives.

For delicious meal ideas and tips on making the transition, check out ChooseVeg.com.