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originally distributed in November 2002 to USDA inspectors working in Kansas, where 20 percent of the nation’s meat is slaughtered and processed. GAP warns that the memo means the USDA is backing away from its “zero tolerance” position on fecal contamination of meat. Food-safety critics and federal inspectors see the memo as another indicator of change in the institutional culture of the Bush USDA, which has already presided over the two largest ground-beef recalls in the agency’s history.

The memo was leaked the same week the USDA announced its plans to include irradiated meat in the food it purchases for the National School Lunch Program. Irradiation uses gamma rays, X rays, or accelerated electrons that alter the molecular structure of food in an attempt to kill pathogens and insects.

Elsa Murano, Bush’s USDA undersecretary for food safety, was a regular radiation ranger when she taught at Texas A & M University. Critics of Murano’s nomination complained that she had compared irradiating food to cooking it in a microwave oven, in order to make irradiation sound less ominous. They also said she is too close to the industry. A week after she made the claim about irradiation being like cooking in a microwave, A & M received a $10 million research-and-development grant from the Titan Corporation, a leading food-irradiation company.

“They are increasing the speed of production lines in slaughterhouses,” said Carol Tucker Foreman, the director of Consumer Federation of America’s Food Policy Institute. “That results in more contamination of the meat. You can kill the bacteria by irradiating the fecal material on the meat. But irradiated feces in your meat is still—still,” she hesitated. “Well, it’s still . . .”

It’s shit, Carol.

Before you answer yes to the question at the top of this story, you might want to ask if the fecal material in the hamburger is “cold pasteurized”—the irradiation proponents’ cool new euphemism for zapping meat with gamma rays. The process does kill the bacteria in the shit.

It doesn’t make it easier to swallow.

For appetizing reading, peruse the USDA’s Kansas memo:

GENERAL INFORMATION AND CONDUCT

You must understand the responsibility you accept when you stop the company’s production process by stopping the line. If a product that is going into the food supply has been directly contaminated and you can justify the production loss that will prevent its entrance into the food supply, then you will be supported because that is your scope of work. There must be verifiable reason and justifiable action for supervision to support your work.

Stopping the line for “possible” cross contamination from split saws and trachea removal is unjustifiable unless you can verify that there is direct product contamination. Verification is OBSERVATION of gross contaminate not SUSPECTED contaminate. This is the only criteria for stopping production.

(On page 1, above, the memo assures the consumer-safety inspectors (CSIs) that two final rail inspectors provide a fail-safe system at the end of the production line. On page 4, below, it warns rail inspectors about stopping the line.)

RAIL INSPECTION

Be sure your rail inspection decisions are verifiable and your actions are justifiable . . .

There is a ZERO TOLERANCE for contamination from ingesta, feces, and milk on the carcass at final presentation at the rail. We will allow the company a chance to trim it off on the moving line unless it is so excessive, that it must be corrected with the line off. You are responsible for time the line is off. Turning off the line must be justifiable and verifiable if we are to support your action. Remember, YOU are accountable for this very serious responsibility of stopping the company’s production for the benefit of food safety. Be sure that supervisors can support your decision. Identifiable and verifiable ingesta or feces is as follows: material of a yellow, green, brown or dark color that has a fibrous nature. Milk is cream colored to white fluid, not clear.

Paul Johnson is acting chairman of the National Joint Council