Master Of Puppets
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| Apr Fri , 2007 12:11 pm Urban Legend: McDonald's |
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Worm meat
There has been a rumor that McDonald's hamburgers are made of worm meat. This rumor dates back to at least 1978, or possibly earlier. One account of the story claims it was dug up by 60 Minutes. The show has never aired a segment on this or any similar theme. Other variants have credited other investigative journalism shows for the "shocker". Some versions of the tale have it being revealed in a talk show chat with company CEOs, though it is unlikely that business people would even be interesting enough to be booked and appear on a talk show.
However, neither McDonald's nor any other restaurant would use worms, for the simple reason that worms cost more per unit of weight. While worm meat is considered very nutritious, and contains no gristle, to use worms as filler would be more expensive than using actual beef. McDonald's has gigantic shipments of meat it regularly orders from cattle farmers. If one were to suppose that worm meat were used, one would have to justify the small proportion of the U.S. population involved in worm farming. At an Atlanta press conference, officials, backed by a regional officer of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, denounced the rumors as "completely unfounded and unsubstantiated", and swore that the company's hamburgers contain nothing but beef. From Newsweek, November 27, 1978. McDonald's released a letter from the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture in 1982, attesting to McDonald's burger's pure beef content. It was used as proof in a rebuttal press conference on October 1 of that year, against the rumor. |
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