All our cong decided they'd buy their meat ONLY from Marks and Spencer as it's Jewish-owned so we could be sure meat had been properly killed/bled!
I wasn't allowed Mr Softee ice-cream or midget gems.
Something else to scare JWS
by skyman 24 Replies latest jw friends
-
glitter
-
tijkmo
yeah i remember avoiding all of these food products...as a kid i couldnt understand why on earth mcintoshes caramac bars would have blood in them..or walls icecream..but what did i know
and then we stopped using fairy liquid cos procter and gamble had demonic symbols on their packaging
to be fair though i think it was individuals who were being paraniod rather than society policy..
but this qfr still makes interesting reading
probably had shares in some of this stuff by this point
From ReadersQuestions
How
concerned should Christians be that blood components, such as dried plasma, might have been added to food products?If there is valid basis to believe that animal blood (or a component of it) is definitely being used locally in food products, Christians should exercise due caution. Still, it would be unwise to be upset by mere suspicion or live with unfounded worry.
Early in man’s history, our Creator ruled that humans should not eat blood. (Genesis 9:3, 4) He stated that blood represents life, which is a gift from him. Blood removed from a creature could be used only in sacrifice, such as on the altar. Otherwise, blood from a creature was to be poured on the ground, in a sense giving it back to God. His people were to avoid sustaining life by taking in blood. He decreed: "You must not eat the blood of any sort of flesh, because the soul of every sort of flesh is its blood. Anyone eating it will be cut off." (Leviticus 17:11-14) God’s prohibition on the eating of blood was repeated for Christians. (Acts 15:28, 29) So the early Christians needed to avoid food containing blood, such as meat from strangled animals or blood sausage.
In practical terms, though, how would those Christians act on their determination to ‘keep themselves from blood’? (Acts 21:25) Should they simply apply the apostle Paul’s words: "Everything that is sold in a meat market keep eating, making no inquiry on account of your conscience"?
No. Those words at 1 Corinthians 10:25 refer to meat that might have been from an animal sacrificed at an idol temple. Back then, excess meat from temples was disposed of by being sold to merchants, who might include it among their supply of meat for sale in their stores. Paul’s point was that meat from a temple was not intrinsically bad or contaminated. Evidently it was customary to drain and use on the pagan altars the blood of animals sacrificed there. So if some of the excess meat was sold in a market, with no obvious link to a temple or the misconceptions of pagans, Christians could simply buy it as commercial meat that was clean and that had been suitably drained of blood.
It would have to be different, however, if those Christians knew that meat from strangled animals (or blood sausage) was one of the choices at local shops. They would need to exercise care in choosing what meat to buy. They might be able to recognize the meat products that contained blood if such had a distinctive color (even as today blood sausage can usually be recognized in lands where it is common). Or Christians might inquire of a reputable butcher or meat merchant. If they had no reason to believe that certain meat contained blood, they could simply buy and eat.
Paul also wrote: "Let your reasonableness become known to all men." (Philippians 4:5) That could apply to the matter of buying meat. Neither Israel’s Law nor the decree of the first-century Christian governing body indicated that God’s people had to go to great lengths in inquiring about meat, even becoming vegetarians if there was the slightest doubt about blood being in available meat.
An Israelite hunter who killed an animal would drain its blood. (Compare Deuteronomy 12:15, 16.) If his family could not eat all the meat, he might sell some. Even in a properly bled carcass, a small amount of blood would remain in the meat, but nothing in the Bible suggests that a Jew buying meat needed to go to extremes in getting such facts as the number of minutes between killing and draining, which artery or vein was cut to let the blood flow, and how the animal was hung up and for how long. Furthermore, the governing body did not write that Christians had to take extraordinary precautions in this regard, as if they needed ultimate answers before eating any meat.
In many lands today, the law, custom, or religious practice is such that meat products (except for unusual items, such as blood sausage) are from animals that must be drained of blood when slaughtered. Thus, Christians in those areas normally need not be preoccupied with slaughtering or processing methods. In an extended sense, they may simply ‘keep eating commercial meat, making no inquiry,’ and they can have a clear conscience that they are abstaining from blood.
There have occasionally been technical reports, though, about commercial blood use that have disturbed certain Christians. Some in the meat-processing industry reason that large amounts of blood from slaughtered animals can be collected for practical applications and profit, such as in fertilizers or animal feed. Researchers have studied whether such blood (or components) might be used in processed meats. A few commercial plants have even turned out limited amounts of liquid, frozen, or powdered plasma (or decolorized red-cell material) that might be substituted for a small percentage of meat in sausagelike products or pâté. Other studies have centered on using powdered blood derivatives as a filler or to bind water and fat in ground meat, in baking products, or in other foods and drinks to add protein or iron.
It is worth noting, however, that such research has been going on for decades. Yet, it seems that use of such products has been very limited, or even nonexistent, in most lands. Some typical reports help to show why:
"Blood is a source of nutritional and functional proteins. However, beef blood has been used only in limited quantities for direct human consumption because of the intense color and characteristic taste."—Journal of Food Science, Volume 55, Number 2, 1990.
"Blood plasma proteins have useful properties such as high solubility, emulsifying activity and hydrophobicity . . . and their use in food processing offers great advantages. However, no effective system to sanitize plasma, especially after dehydration, has been established in Japan."—Journal of Food Science, Volume 56, Number 1, 1991.
Some Christians have occasionally checked the labels on packaged foods, since many governments require that ingredients be listed. And they may choose to do so regularly with any product that they have reason to believe might contain blood. It would be right, of course, to avoid products that listed things such as blood, blood plasma, plasma, globin (or globulin) protein, or hemoglobin (or globin) iron. Marketing information from one European company in this field acknowledged: "Information concerning the use of globin as an ingredient must be marked on the package of the food in such a way that the consumer is not misled as to the composition or value of the food."
However, even as to checking labels or making inquiry of butchers, reasonableness is needed. It is not as if every Christian worldwide must study the labels and ingredients on all packaged food or should interrogate employees at restaurants or food stores. A Christian might first ask himself, ‘Is there any verified evidence that blood and its derivatives are used in normal food products in this area or country?’ In most places the answer is no. Hence, many Christians have concluded that they personally will not divert a great deal of time and attention to checking on remote possibilities. A person who does not feel this way should act in accord with his conscience, without judging others who might resolve the matter otherwise but in good conscience before God.—Romans 14:2-4, 12.
Even if food products containing blood can be produced, it may well be that this is not widely done because of cost, legislation, or other factors. For example, Food Processing (September 1991) noted: "For those processors that have any problems with the less than 1% (in the finished meat patty) of hydrolyzed beef plasma in the blend, an alternate mix replaces it with whey protein concentrate and could be certified as Kosher."
It bears emphasizing that law, custom, or taste in many lands is such that blood is normally drained from slaughtered animals and that such blood is not used in other food products. If there is no substantial basis for thinking that the situation is different locally or that a major change has occurred recently, Christians should guard against becoming disturbed by mere possibility or rumor. When, though, it is certain or highly likely that blood is widely used—whether in food or in medical treatment—we should be determined to obey God’s command to abstain from blood.
-
tijkmo
Dyed Smarties make vegetarians see red October 29, 2004 - 1:39PM
Page Tools
Vegetarians in Britain criticised the makers of top-selling sweet Smarties for using an ingredient obtained from crushed beetles.
The brightly-coloured snack contains a red dye processed from the dried body of the female cochineal insect, collected in central America.
It produces the colourant cochineal, otherwise known as carmine or E120 - found in the kitchens of many Australian homes.
The Vegetarian Society named Smarties, made by food giant Nestle, the winner of its Imperfect World Award at a ceremony in London.
Two other products were nominated in the category, for food and drink that appear to be suitable for vegetarians until closer inspection.
Guinness uses isinglass, a form of gelatine made from fish bladders, in the production process to make the stout clearer.
The second runner-up was Bassett's Liquorice Allsorts, which contains gelatine made from animal bones, according to the Vegetarian Society.
"There are some companies putting gremlins on our shopping lists - making products that at first glance are vegetarian, but then you look a little closer, do a little research and find out that the sweets your toddler asks for or the beer your host offers you, actually use animal by-products," Tina Fox, the charity's chief executive, said. Advertisement Advertisement
"We know the deliciousness of these products doesn't depend on the animal ingredients, and the Imperfect World Award is a message to manufacturers to consider the alternatives."
"Cochineal, otherwise known as carmine, is probably the best known of all food colours," Nestle said in a statement.
"The raw material for cochineal manufacture is obtained from insects native to Mexico, but a number of extraction and purification processes have to be gone through to make the preparation used for food colouring."
The company said it appreciated the needs of vegetarians but "we cannot, unfortunately, produce small quantities of special sweets to meet these varied demands".
It pointed out that it made a number of vegetarian-friendly sweets including Aero, After Eight, Double Cream, Matchmakers, Rolo, Quality Street, and Yorkie.
"According to our product team, isinglass is the only fining agent we can use. It has been approved for use in the UK," a spokeswoman for Guinness said.
"There should be no residue in the finished beer so as far as I'm concerned it is suitable for vegetarians."
The ceremony also honoured products and places that were suitable for vegetarians.
The award for best vegetarian baby food went to the Baby Organix range, while best meat or fish substitute was given to Quorn mine.
Marks and Spencer was named the best vegetarian wine and beer retailer, Cafe Maitreya - in Bristol - picked up the award for best gourmet vegetarian restaurant and Nottingham's V1 won the category for vegetarian fast food outlet.
Brighton is the best place in Britain to live or visit if you are a vegetarian.
It beat Edinburgh, Glastonbury and Manchester which were also nominated in the category for best UK destination for non-meat eaters.
"We have taken gelatine out of a number of our products where we can and it is certainly not in out interests to exclude any consumer," a spokesman for Cadbury Trebor Bassett said.
"However, there is no alternative way of replicating the texture of Liquorice Allsorts without using this product."
-
rebel8
Maybe this product is new, but I don't think using blood in meat is anything new. Next time you're in the grocery store, check the label on a pack of krab--imitation crabmeat--beef plasma is used to make the red part.
I don't think there is anything morally wrong with it. It grosses me out terribly though. I can't bring myself to eat the krab stuff, and now that it's going to be added to other things, that's all the more I'll be avoiding meat.
Gross alert: I think the idea sickens me more because of all the bleeding I've had with my disorder rather than the jw doctrine. I've had so much bleeding in the nose/mouth, the idea of voluntarily putting beef blood there makes me gag big time.
Moving on to brighter topics, does anyone remember the Milky Way scare? There was a rumor circulating among jws that the nougat was made with blood in Milky Ways and similar candy bars. I think it was in the early '80s.
I've always wondered why gelatine was allowed. At the time, organ transplants were not ok, but it was fine to eat ground up bones.
-
LouBelle
We had to refrain from eating beefy brovril because it apparently had blood - I kinda just ignored that I had it on my toat anyways.
