Web Note: It is interesting that the disagreement over “natural” chicken has prompted officials to consider changing labeling guidelines. Meat is one of the few areas where the “natural” label actually means something. It would be really nice if labeling guidelines were introduced to regulate use of the word “natural” in any marketing context. Many “natural” products are simply conventionally farmed, additive and GMO-containing processed foods. OCA would like “natural” to mean “free of food additives, GMOs, hormones, chemicals etc.” In other words, transitioning to organic. For more info please visit OCA’s “Myth of Natural” Campaign Page.

A disagreement among
poultry producers about whether chicken injected with salt, water and
other ingredients can be promoted as “natural” has prompted federal
officials to consider changing labeling guidelines.

The
U.S. Department of Agriculture had maintained that if chicken wasn’t
flavored artificially or preserved with chemicals, it could carry the
word “natural” on the package.

But the agency
agreed to take another look at its policy after some producers,
politicians and health advocates noted that about one-third of chicken
sold in the U.S. was injected with additives that could represent up to
15 percent of the meat’s weight, doubling or tripling its sodium
content. Some argue that could mislead or potentially harm consumers
who must limit their salt intake.

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service plans to issue new proposed rules this fall.

Perdue,
the nation’s third largest poultry producer, is among those pushing for
a change. The company has joined a group called the Truthful Labeling
Coalition, which has hired a lobbyist and launched an advertising
campaign.

“Our labels say natural or all
natural only if there is nothing added,” Perdue spokesman Luis Luna
said. “Under no circumstances is it acceptable to label poultry that
has been enhanced with water or broth or solutions as natural, or all
natural.”

Such mixtures are injected into poultry to make the meat tastier and more tender.

The
two largest chicken processors, Pilgrim’s Pride and Tyson Foods, are
among those that affix “natural” labels to chicken injected with extra
salt and water. Industry experts said the practice has become more
common in the past decade.