Color Fixation of Meats Part 4: The Consumer

While I was working on my B.S. in Biochemistry/Biophysics I would often do taste testing for the Food Science Department (it was fun and I got some bucks for it). That was a very enlightening experience. I learned about how foods were tweaked to be better tasting, more mouth watering, and look good enough for a beauty pagent. And the bonus was that, due to laws regulating research, I had to be an informed participant. That meant that I knew everything they were adding to the foods.

Picky in their Pick

From this taste testing, I realized that just because something looks good doesn't mean it tastes good. And just because something tastes good doesn't mean it looks good. But looks are very important to the consumer, even at the expense of taste and nutrition. Example: which would you prefer to eat, a shriveled up apple, or a nice big shiney one? A small discolored strawberry that is delicious, or a huge, bright red, bland one? So people may comment that apples are lightly waxed, but those apples are bought up more than the shriveled ones. Another example: awhile back they made green ketchup for kids. Didn't make it for adults. Why? Well, would you love your burger more or less if you had green slime oozing out from your burger. That is what I thought. So how a product looks affects your eating experience.
In the article, one person commented that by fixing meat, the consumer is being "deceived." Ummm...that is a huge stretch. No body is really that stupid (at least I hope not) to cook up stinky, slimy meat just because it is still pink.


The ground beef I buy actually is labelled to say that even though it is a purplish-blue color, it will turn back to red once it is exposed to the air. Even though I am informed and educated about this, I must admit the meat looks a bit disgusting until it turns back to the bloody red, meat color that I savor so much.

The article stated that a lot of fresh--though brown--beef had to be thrown out because nobody would buy it. Who would you like to absorb this cost? Wouldn't it be better if we didn't waste good food? (Don't forget those starving people in Africa, now).

What should the consumer's response be? Well, that is up to you. My opinion is that consumers (especially Americans) should stop being so fussy about what things look like. We are pampered to no end. The smallest thing and we throw food away. Many other cultures around the world are grateful for so much. If we took on this attitude, perhaps meat producers wouldn't have to take this color fixative step because consumers would be fine with buying brown, yet still safe, meat.