Why Eating Tainted Beef Is OK

Did you know that ground beef that has tested positive for E. coli is allowed to be sold after it has been cooked and processed?

I didn’t, until just now, and though the idea squicks me out a little, it turns out that it really isn't a big deal. After all, processing removes a lot of stuff that can't and shouldn't be sold to the public—that, in part, is what processing is.

That didn't stop ABC News from presenting this information in a highly sensationalistic way, leaving out crucial details and trying to tie the practice to the most recent E. coli scare, though there is absolutely no connection between that outbreak and the practice of cooking tainted beef before sale. 

Does the Agriculture Department rule allowing this practice increase the possibility of people getting sick from the once-tainted beef? ABC News doesn't say. It doesn't even address the question.

But it turns out that, almost certainly, the practice has never resulted in single case of illness.

The Chicago Tribune caused a bit of a stir in 2007 when it published an article about the "E. coli loophole." But that article at least addressed the details of the matter, and put it into its proper context. "Cooking the meat," the paper reported, "destroys the bacteria and makes it safe to eat." And: "There is no evidence that 'cook only' meat has directly sickened consumers."