The truth about Australian beef: How some steaks, mince and sausages are infected with CANCER-causing chemicals before being sold at supermarkets
- Consumers may be eating beef containing levels of cancer-causing chemicals
- Farmers are reportedly receiving the wrong information about cattle exposure
- Supermarkets and butchers could then unwittingly be purchasing bad beef
- The chemicals enter the meat of cows who are grazing on contaminated land
Australian consumers may unwittingly be eating beef containing dangerously high levels of cancer-causing chemicals.
New South Wales cattle farmer Alastair McLaren is certain others in the industry are selling cows to butchers and supermarkets which have been exposed to toxins through the land they graze on.
He believes farmers have received the wrong information regarding supplying the cattle to be used as food, 9News reported.
Mr McLaren’s own herd of cows were exposed to high levels of PFAS, PFOS and PFOA through the soil on his Richmond farm in west Sydney, near the Royal Australian Air Force base.
The chemicals have been linked to increased cancer risk in animals in the past, but there is not yet enough information to confirm whether this risk is passed onto humans.
Australian consumers may unwittingly be eating beef containing dangerously high levels of cancer-causing chemicals
The chemicals were also previously used in fire fighting retardant.
He said some store owners may not even know the beef they have been supplied contains harmful chemicals, which have previously been linked to cancer.
‘They are unsuspecting victims in all of this as everybody else is,’ he said.
‘Consumers need to be more aware so they need to ask questions of where their beef comes from.’
In his case, Mr McLaren was given advice by The Department of Primary Industries to change his herd’s water supply.
New South Wales cattle farmer Alastair McLaren is certain others in the industry are selling cows which have been exposed to toxins through the land they graze on
He was told switching them to a fresh supply of non-contaminated town water would lower their PFAS readings within 165 days.
He switched half of his cattle.
The other half were sent to a farm where the land and soil was known to be clean and free from contamination.
The first half, which followed the advice of regulators, saw no improvement in the quality of their meat.
In fact, the percentage of the toxins continued to rise.
Meanwhile the cows which had been sent away steadily began returning to regular levels.
The meat became contaminated because cows were grazing on land and water which had been sprayed with the chemicals
Some store owners may not even know the beef they have been supplied contains harmful chemicals which has previously been linked to cancer
As bills mounted, the McLaren’s were forced to sell their cattle to stay afloat.
A letter sent from Australian Registered Cattle Breeders to the prime minister’s office which was seen by 9News explained that farmers had been told they could sell the cattle but not consume it.
‘There is a serious potential threat to the Australian Beef Industry if it becomes public that animals with high levels of PFOS and PFOA are being allowed to enter domestic and export beef markets,’ the letter warned.
American scientists confirmed the toxins had links to two forms of cancer in Ohio and West Virginia, despite Australia’s Federal Health Department ensuring there is no link.
The McLaren’s were forced to sell their herd of cattle to pay for their mounting bills