Plumping

Plumping, also referred to as “enhancing” or “injecting,” is the process by which some poultry companies inject raw chicken meat with saltwater, chicken stock, seaweed extract, water and additives, or some combination thereof. The practice is most commonly used for fresh chicken and is also used in frozen poultry products, although other meats may also be plumped. Poultry producers have injected chicken (and other meat) with saltwater solutions since the 1970s, claiming it makes for tastier, juicier meat. According to Kenneth McMillin, Professor of Meat Science at the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center in Baton Rouge, processors use multiple-needle injectors or vacuum-tumblers, that force the sodium solution into the muscle. Binding agents in the solution prevent the added salt and water from leaching out of the meat during transport, in grocery stores and during cooking.

Plumping, also referred to as “enhancing” or “injecting,” is the process by which some poultry companies inject raw chicken meat with saltwater, chicken stock, seaweed extract, water and additives, or some combination thereof. The practice is most commonly used for fresh chicken and is also used in frozen poultry products, although other meats may also be plumped. Poultry producers have injected chicken (and other meat) with saltwater solutions since the 1970s, claiming it makes for tastier, juicier meat. According to Kenneth McMillin, Professor of Meat Science at the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center in Baton Rouge, processors use multiple-needle injectors or vacuum-tumblers, that force the sodium solution into the muscle. Binding agents in the solution prevent the added salt and water from leaching out of the meat during transport, in grocery stores and during cooking. ==Controversy== ===Cost to consumers=== Plumped chicken commonly contains 15% of its total weight in saltwater, but in some cases can contain as much as 30%. Since the price of chicken is based on weight, opponents of the practice estimate that shoppers could be paying up to an additional $1.70 per package for added saltwater, with the total annual cost to U.S. families estimated to be $2 billion in added weight charges. ==External links== Associated Press - Chicken producers debate 'natural' label

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1341540494 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.