More And More Meats Come with Moisture Added Ruth Fantasia c.2001 Albany
Times Union The words ``moisture enhanced'' are appearing with greater
frequency on labels in the meat case these days but few know what they mean.
Simply explained, the meat has been injected or tumbled with a solution -
usually made of water, salt and other seasonings - to prevent it from drying
out during cooking. The process is similar to self-basting bone-in poultry
products, says Joanne Gage, vice president for consumer and marketing
services at the Price Chopper grocery chain, but it is usually applied to
pork and boneless, skinless chicken products. Moisture-enhanced pork
products have been available in some areas of the country for the past three
to four years. Labeled ``Moist & Tender,'' these products cost no more than
regular pork, says Mike Patterson, Price Chopper's vice president of meat
sales and merchandising. Price Chopper tested the product for three months
at its stores in Vermont. Consumer response was ``overwhelmingly
favorable,'' Gage says. Nationwide, 40 percent of all pork sold is moisture
enhanced and industry analysts expect that figure to rise to 85 percent by
2005. Like other moisture-enhanced products, Moist & Tender pork is
injected with a solution after cutting and just prior to packaging,
Patterson says. ``The needles are so fine you won't see the injection
holes.'' According to USDA guidelines, contents of the solution and how
much is used must be printed on the product label. For instance, Moist &
Tender pork products are labeled ``Moisture enhanced with a 10 percent
solution of water, salt, sodium phosphate and lemon juice.'' This means by
weight 10 percent of the meat is solution. Other products that are
considered to be moisture enhanced include meats in some prepackaged meal
kits and meats that are marinated prior to packing, Patterson says. But
there is disagreement about that definition. Chris Whaley, product
spokeswoman for Perdue Farms in Salisbury, Md., says that although the
company's new Simply Saute line is labeled ``moistness enhanced by up to a
20 percent solution of seasonings,'' the product is not ``moisture
enhanced'' because it hasn't been injected. ``(The chicken) has been soaked
in a solution of seasonings and tumbled, just as you would soak it in
marinade and turn it in your refrigerator at home,'' Whaley says. Whether
added by tumbling or injection, the solution invariably contains salt, which
may be a concern for those with high blood pressure. A four-ounce serving
of Perdue's Simply Saute Savory Classic flavor ready-to-cook chicken breast
strips contains 500 milligrams of sodium, 25 percent of the daily allowance
of sodium recommended by the USDA, the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services and the American Heart Association. And a four-ounce serving of
Price Chopper's Moist & Tender pork contains 350 milligrams of sodium.
While both products contain far more sodium than the equivalent portions of
non-enhanced meats - chicken breast contains 40 to 45 milligrams per serving
and center-cut pork contains 88 milligrams - neither are as high in sodium
as other foods, including turkey franks (1,175 milligrams), breaded chicken
nuggets (585 milligrams) and cooked ham (1,437 milligrams). And neither
taste salty when cooked. Since they don't dry out as quickly,
moisture-enhanced meats are generally easier to cook and more forgiving of
overcooking than their regular counterparts. We offered unidentified
samples of three different types of bone-in, center-cut pork chops to
tasters. All cut to a 1-inch thickness, the three types of chops were fried
with a slight coating of vegetable oil for the same amount of time. Here
were the results: 1) Smithfield Lean Generation pork. Processed from hogs
specially bred for their lower fat meat, this is the only pork product
approved by the American Heart Association. It was also the least favorite
of our tasters. 2) Moist & Tender pork. Moisture enhanced with a 10 percent
solution of water, salt, sodium phosphate and lemon juice. These chops were
preferred by two out of three tasters because they didn't shrink during
cooking and tasted more like the pork ``Mom used to make.'' 3) Traditional
pork. The most flavorful of the samples but also the most greasy, according
to tasters. These chops shrunk considerably during cooking but still were
the favorite of one of our tasters. SODIUM FACTS: The average American
consumes 4,000 to 5,000 milligrams of sodium per day. The USDA's recommended
daily allowance is 2,000 to 2,500 milligrams of sodium per day. Adults on
sodium-restricted diets should consume no more than 1,500 milligrams per
day. ---- (The Albany Times Union Web site is at
<http://www.timesunion.com.> ----- (Distributed by Hearst News Service.
The Hearst Newspapers Web site is at <http://www.hearstcorp.com/news.html.>
Debra Colchamiro
Senior Researcher
NBC InfoCenter
(212) 664-5146
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