John Durant

A few years ago, I was your typical office-worker: stressed out, uneven energy, overweight, and inconsistent complexion. Now I'm just your typical 28-year old urban hunter-gatherer on a quest to be healthy, and having a few adventures along the way. See my full bio.

Join the wolfpack...

Paleo NYC

Barefoot Runners NYC

Colbert on Taco Bell beef scandal

Here is Stephen Colbert on the allegations that Taco Bell beef is less than 35% beef.

Now, to be fair, I'm going to post Taco Bell's reply. They claim they use 88% beef, plus water, spices, and the usual cast of unpronounceable characters:

88% USDA-inspected quality beef
3-5% water for moisture
3-5% spices (including salt, chili pepper, onion powder, tomato powder, sugar, garlic powder, cocoa powder and a proprietary blend of Mexican spices and natural flavors).
3-5% oats, starch, sugar, yeast, citric acid, and other ingredients that contribute to the quality of our product.

Frankly, I doubt those "other ingredients" and "natural flavors" are really all that much different than most other processed foods in the grocery store. My distaste for heavily processed foods is matched by my distaste for aggressive trial lawyers looking to make bank with false claims. I can just as easily imagine that Taco Bell uses taco meat filler as I can imagine that some ambulance chasers concocted all this for PR purposes. Draw your own conclusions.

Comments

Downside - the beef could be

Submitted by tim_lebsack on Tue, 02/01/2011 - 16:00.

Downside - the beef could be the healthiest Taco Bell fare.

One of my friends told me

Submitted by OFWHAP on Mon, 01/31/2011 - 19:07.

One of my friends told me that he's seen how Taco Bell's "beef" is prepared. They throw some powder onto a skillet, add water, and the mixture bubbles up into "beef."

"Tell my kids I love them"

Submitted by San on Mon, 01/31/2011 - 12:50.

"Tell my kids I love them" LoL, the best part of the whole thing.

I counted 6 different types

Submitted by Jake on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 03:24.

I counted 6 different types of sugar from the ingredient list they have on their web site. They use different types so they all appear at the bottom of the ingredient list. The accumulated sugar is the reason so many people are addicted to Taco Bell products.

Actually the reason Taco

Submitted by joethecaveman on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 16:43.

Actually the reason Taco Bell(as well as all fast food) is addicting to people who consume it is it's all loaded with MSG.Even if they don't use the exact "Monosodium Glutamate" it still has MSG in the form of modified corn starch, yeast, autolyzed yeast extract, natural flavors, maltodextrin, isolated oat product, soy lecithin, citric acid, natural smoke flavor.That's 9 ingredients that all contain huge amounts of "Free Glutamic Acid" which is what MSG is made of, it's the SAME thing. This is how food companies put "No MSG" on food labels when it fact it contains MSG in the form of those things I listed and people buy the food not realizing they are ingesting MSG in massive amounts.That's not even all the deceptive ingredient names MSG hides other, there are literally a hundred or so. Here is a FULL list of all the names of chemicals/additives that are the same as MSG. They work the same way in the brain causing massive cell destruction and mental and physical health problems: http://www.msgmyth.com/hidename.htmI recommended reading "Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills" by Dr. Russell Blaylock. It explains how MSG is a neurotransmitter, literally a drug....it makes people addicted to food containing it as well as make them want to eat MORE of it.MSG should be illegal but there are powerful people keeping it legal because there is tons of money being made from it at the cost of people's health and lives. It's so deceptive and sickening.This is why you can't eat at nearly ANY restaraunts because it's all loaded with MSG and the many "other names" for MSG. 'Hydrolzyed beef protein' is another popular one, that's why McDonald's french fries are so good. It contains that. Completely full of MSG. This is reality people....

I meant to mention that the

Submitted by joethecaveman on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 16:49.

I meant to mention that the taco bell beef "seasoning" contains THOSE 9 additives I listed in the post above this one.Keep in mind that "Glutamate acid" is natural in beef and many whole foods, but "Free Glutamic Acid" is not natural and is factory created. It doesn't exist in nature. It is an isolated form and that's where the harm is.MSG and its many "hidden names" are the reason for the huge surge in ADD/ADHD/autism ect. you name it.Read all about it at msgmyth.com!

Thanks for the link and info,

Submitted by John on Mon, 01/31/2011 - 11:08.

Thanks for the link and info, Joe -- scary. Didn't realize the run-around they've done on MSG.

I never checked the list,

Submitted by zach on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 09:39.

I never checked the list, but I knew the food couldn't be made of anything good. And as bad as I knew it was, every so often I would get a craving, against my better judgment, for a load of Taco Bell. Always thought maybe a percentage of that meat was a drug or some other addictive substance to make me cave. I guess the sugar explains that. I hope to never return.

You were craving it because

Submitted by joethecaveman on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 16:52.

You were craving it because it contains a drug called MSG. It's a neurotransmitter, it excites the brain and rewards the tongue.Sugar is addicting too but that's not the reason why fast food is addicting, it's MSG bottom line.

I haven't eaten at Taco Bell

Submitted by Liz on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 14:50.

I haven't eaten at Taco Bell in over 10 years. Just think to yourself "They ADMIT to feeding me sand. What the hell is in here that I don't know about?"

I love the "extras" in the

Submitted by zach on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 00:44.

I love the "extras" in the background of the Taco Bell rebuttal. Where are they all going in such a hurry? So staged. Ha.

LOLHilarious Colbert

Submitted by Contemplationist on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 00:26.

LOLHilarious Colbert segment. Yeah the "we START with 100% USDA beef" is a very weasely statement. Exactly how Colbert mentioned - where the fuck do you END? And yeah trial lawyers are mostly leeches and parasites, but if the 35% number is true, I wouldn't mind the suit at all.