Accept no fillers! Well...not so fast

Recently, a disgruntled microbiologist at the USDA blew the lid open on the "pink slime" controversy. If you haven't heard about the process, beef trimmings are separated using a centrifuge and is then sterilized using ammonia gas. This is used as a filler in ground beef. This has caused an upset in people that eat anything with this pink slime. However, I think this has been a sensationalized issue that has been blown out of proportion. This post is dedicated to why fillers are used not only in the meat industry, but in coffee, beer, and many other foods (Hot dogs are especially notorious). Additionally, the use of fillers is found in many household items, such as cleaning solutions, detergents, and just about anything, as we'll see.

The biggest reason that fillers are used in foods today is to maintain low prices. In the US, we spend less than 10% of our income on food. I truly believe that is because our food is cheap rather than us being rich. The price of this food is controlled through subsidies and the use of fillers. Both of these features allow the US to feed so many people, regardless of their level of income.

Another reason to use fillers is to take an existing product, and stretch it out to reach more people. A great example of this is during the civil war. During the civil war, confederate troops would add root chicory and even acorns to their coffee to make their rations stretch out. Sometimes when supplies are tight, it just makes sense to make the most of a limited product.

Now that we have established the needs for fillers, we will look at some common fillers used in common foods or drinks. The most common filler used in the world is water. That's right, water. Water is used to dilute detergents, cleaning solutions, and even in pesticides. Why? water as a filler makes substances like those mentioned safer. It also makes for a more convenient product as it is often ready to use.

Another common filler is corn-based products. Corn is used in everything as a filler it seems. Corn is used as a filler in malted barley to make cheaper beer (which is probably why it doesn't taste as good). Corn starch is used as a thickener with literally hundreds of uses. Then there's public enemy #1, corn syrup. High fructose corn syrup literally is in thousands of products. Why? it all goes back to price. To use a sweetener produced in the US is much cheaper than importing cane sugar from the Caribbean or Central America. The US is addicted to sugar, and a cheap alternative equals lower prices. While I don't necessarily agree with the US sugar addiction, it's there and people would be outraged to pay $2 for a soda.

While writing this, I got to thinking about all the fillers that may be in products, and I'll leave you with a few products I found while browsing the house. And while no one prefers fillers, they make our American lifestyle possible with low prices. And as I leave you today, I want you to ponder on the cost of ground beef, versus prime cut steaks. Many people simply cannot afford to eat prime rib, New York strip steak, and filet mignon every week. Sometimes, you gotta have a burger and hotdog night.

Left: some "original syrup" from Giant. On the reverse, we see the ingredients. Apparently, the original syrup wasn't a maple syrup.

This is the back of a coke can. The first ingredient is water, followed by high fructose corn syrup. This 12 oz portion has 39 grams of sugar from the syrup.

While this is non-dairy creamer, the first ingredient, again is corn. This is a common filler used.