[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 14]
[House]
[Page 19788]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        CARBON MONOXIDE IN MEAT

  (Mr. STUPAK asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. STUPAK. Mr. Speaker, carbon monoxide added to meat packaging is 
deceptive for consumers. Blasting meat with carbon monoxide makes 
spoiled meat appear to be red, wholesome, healthy when its really 
dangerous to eat.
  Although it is well known that consumers rely heavily on color to 
evaluate the freshness of meat, the FDA has not required the use of 
carbon monoxide in the packaging of meat to be labeled.
  Consumers, therefore, have no way of knowing whether the meat has 
been treated, and they can no longer rely on color to judge the 
freshness and safety of treated meat.
  Here's meat we left out for 27 hours. The top's been treated with 
carbon monoxide, the bottom has not. The bottom is brown and nasty. The 
top looks fresh and wholesome. Eat either one of these packages of meat 
and you'll become very ill.
  For this reason, I will today introduce the Carbon Monoxide Treated 
Foods Safe Handling, Labeling and Consumer Protection Act. This 
legislation is needed to help prevent consumer deception and serious 
risk to our public health.
  Given the recent events that have highlighted food safety risks to 
public health, the Carbon Monoxide Treated Meat Safe Handling, Labeling 
and Consumer Protection Act takes the important step in helping inform 
and empower consumers to ensure their food is safe and wholesome.

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