Exposed! A man ate "lymphatic meat" in a takeaway! Is "lymphatic meat" really harmful?

Recently, a Mr. Xia from Huangshi, Hubei, posted a video on social media saying that he ordered a takeaway, in which the meat slices for stir-fried pork with green peppers were suspected to be lymph meat .

When the reporter interviewed Mr. Xia about this matter, he said that the meat in the takeaway green pepper fried meat he received was (suspected) lymph meat, and he contacted the store for a refund but was threatened by the store. He recorded the recording and released it, and then the local market supervision department intervened in the investigation.

What is lymphatic meat? Is it harmful to eat it? How to identify lymphatic meat?

01

What is lymphatic meat?

"Lymphatic meat" usually refers to meat from which the lymphatic tissue has not been removed , such as the "blood neck meat" and laryngeal trachea meat of pork, cattle and sheep from which the neck lymph nodes have not been removed.

Lymph nodes are an important part of the animal's immune system. They are organs that eliminate pathogens in the animal's body. They can filter lymph, phagocytize pathogenic microorganisms and other harmful substances that invade the animal's body.

Generally speaking, when animals are slaughtered, the bacteria and viruses in the lymph nodes have not been cleared in time, and it is difficult to ensure that they are completely killed in the subsequent cooking. Other foods may also be contaminated due to incomplete heating or improper operation. If people eat them carelessly, they may be infected with diseases and bring health risks. Therefore, before meat is officially put on the market, it must undergo strict inspection and quarantine to remove harmful parts and reduce the risk of consumption.

Take pork as an example. During slaughter, the non-edible parts such as the thyroid gland, adrenal glands and diseased lymph nodes are removed, which is often called the "de-glandularization" process. This process basically removes the harmful lymph nodes. According to China's "Quality Inspection Procedures for Pig Slaughter Products", diseased lymph nodes and abscesses detected must be trimmed.

The same is true for beef, mutton, poultry, etc. Generally speaking, meat purchased through formal channels in the market is not lymphatic meat, so whether the above-mentioned merchants use lymphatic meat or not, it is still pending the final inspection results from the relevant departments.

02

How harmful is it to eat lymphatic meat?

Meat that enters the market must first undergo inspection and quarantine. During the slaughtering process, there is a process of removing the three glands, namely the thyroid gland, adrenal glands and diseased lymph nodes. Meat that has passed these inspections and processing can be eaten with confidence.

Even if you accidentally eat lymphatic meat, it does not mean that it is necessarily harmful.

First, not all lymph nodes are harmful.

In fact, the process of "removing the three glands" emphasizes the removal of diseased lymph nodes. The risk of eating normal lymph nodes after cooking is not great. Usually, people may face the risk of infection with pathogens only when the animal itself is sick + the pathogens in a large number of diseased lymph nodes are not killed + a large amount of consumption occurs at the same time. For most people, the risk of contracting a disease by eating lymph meat is very small.

Secondly, the lymphatic tissue of animals and humans is distributed throughout the body, and normal lymph cannot be completely removed.

In a broad sense, lymphatic meat refers to meat with obvious lymph nodes, while the rest of the animal's body may also contain a small amount of lymph nodes. For example, there are hundreds of lymph nodes in a pig's body, which are spread all over the body and cannot be completely removed. If all of them need to be removed, the integrity of the carcass will be destroyed and the risk of raw meat being contaminated by the environment will increase. Therefore, as long as you have eaten pork, most people may have eaten lymph nodes.

However, regular pork must undergo inspection and quarantine before being slaughtered and entering the market. As long as the inspection and quarantine are qualified, there is no essential difference between meat with lymph nodes and meat from other parts, and it can be eaten with confidence.

03

How to identify lymphatic meat?

Some people on the Internet have recommended some tips for identifying lymphatic meat, such as touching it to see if it feels granular, touching it to see if it is sticky, smelling it to see if it has a fishy smell, seeing if the color is shiny, etc., but these methods are actually difficult to accurately identify and are not convenient to operate.

For example, the color of meat can vary due to different types of meat, storage time, storage conditions, and even lighting issues in the sales venue. It is not practical for people to touch the meat with their hands or smell it when they buy it, as touching it with their hands itself poses a risk of cross-contamination and does not meet good food safety operating practices. Even if the meat has a fishy smell, it is not necessarily because of lymphatic meat; other bacterial contamination and corruption can also cause an odor.

In fact, what we should do is:

1. Try to buy meat from regular supermarkets, markets and e-commerce platforms. It is standard practice to remove the three glands of meat currently sold on the market. As long as you buy it from regular supermarkets and market channels, you don’t have to worry too much. If you cook it thoroughly according to the correct cooking method before eating, there will be no health hazards.

2. Do not buy meat of unknown origin, especially do not buy it for cheap. Meat from private slaughter, clandestine trade, or smuggling is much more likely to have the glands not removed or to have disease. Do not buy it, and do not take risks just to save money.

3. Don’t buy meat you’re not sure about. Of course, if you’re not sure about the color or taste of the meat when buying it, you can choose not to buy it and buy it somewhere else.

References:

[1] GB/T 17996-1999 Specification for Quality Inspection of Pig Slaughter Products

[2] GB/T 17236-2019 Rules for the slaughter of livestock and poultry - Pigs

[3] GB/T 19479-2019 Good Manufacturing Practice for Slaughter of Livestock and Poultry - Pigs

[4] GB/T 19477-2018 Code of practice for slaughtering livestock and poultry

[5]GB 18393-2001 Quality Inspection Procedure for Slaughtered Cattle and Sheep Products

[6] GB/T 19478-2018 Code of practice for slaughtering livestock and poultry - Chicken

[7]NY/T 909-2004 Standard for Pig Slaughter Quarantine

Author: Ruan Guangfeng, Director of the Science and Technology Department of the Kexin Food and Nutrition Information Exchange Center

Review｜Li Jing Professor of College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University