I guess this probably means that they shouldn't rouge that occasional teat that turns up on pancetta, either.

If some of the meat in supermarkets is looking rosier than it used to, the reason is that a growing number of markets are selling it in airtight packages treated with a touch of carbon monoxide to help the product stay red for weeks.

This form of "modified atmosphere packaging," a technique in which other gases replace oxygen, has become more widely used as supermarkets eliminate their butchers and buy precut, "case-ready" meat from processing plants.

The reason for its popularity in the industry is clear. One study, conducted at Oklahoma State University for the Cattlemen's Beef Board in 2003, said retailers lost at least $1 billion a year as meat turned brown from exposure to oxygen, because, though it might still be fairly fresh and perfectly safe, consumers simply judged meat's freshness by its color.

Seriously, the "case-ready" part may be the really bad news. When you make the groceries, see if there is anyone in the vicinity of the meat case who is holding a knife. The kid who initials your receipt from the self-serve checkout will not cut you a hanger steak.

 

Comments

[max]

Exactly. Maybe they wouldn't have to deal with a consumer-ignorance-inflicted $1b "loss" if the meat was aged properly in quarters and butchered on the spot.

[la_depressionada]

i loathe the bonedust from the band saws. hanger steak is my fave. on le dit: onglet.