Fresh chicken might be "enhanced" with water, salt
Some fresh chicken is "enhanced," as it's called, with a solution of water, salt, sodium phosphate and sometimes other ingredients injected or otherwise added during processing for moistness and flavor.
Under federal rules the package front must declare the addition. The label might say, "Enhanced with up to 15 percent solution" — that is, 15 percent of this product's weight comes from the added liquid. But sometimes the print is so small you might not notice it.
Call for more prominent labeling
Now, a trade association of chicken processors has launched a campaign targeting the practice and calling for more prominent labeling. However, the organization is not targeting widespread use of the same additive in frozen chicken.
Shoppers who buy enhanced fresh chicken are paying partly for water and also raising their sodium intake, says the California Poultry Federation.
"We want consumers to know what they're getting," said federation president Bill Mattos. "We think it's kind of a fraud to sell something in the refrigerated (not frozen) case that looks fresh and feels fresh but contains up to 15 percent water and salt."
Although there's no legal limit on how much solution can be added, he said the level in chicken usually does not exceed 15 percent of the total weight.
Not usual suspects
While processors — including some in Mattos' organization — also add the solution to some frozen chicken, he contends consumers don't expect it in fresh poultry and might assume they're getting chicken only.
As defined by federal regulations, fresh chicken has never seen temperatures below 26 degrees.
Because freezing dries chicken and the added liquid counteracts that, the practice is more widespread in frozen poultry, say industry spokesmen.
Barbara Bruemmer, who lectures on nutritional sciences at the University of Washington, agreed that solution-added fresh chicken could confuse consumers.
"It sort of morphs from basic meats to more processed meats. Something like this might not be assumed" to have added sodium or other ingredients, she said.
Big boost in sales
Enhanced fresh chicken has been around for several years on a small scale, but industry insiders say it got a big boost within the last couple of years when retail behemoth Wal-Mart began selling it in large quantity.
Now, an estimated 10 to 20 percent of fresh chicken nationwide is enhanced, and the share is rising, says the National Chicken Council, the country's largest poultry trade group.
The percentage appears to be smaller, but growing, on the West Coast. An estimate could not be found for Washington, but it's about 7 percent in California, said Mattos.
Favorable taste tests
Taste tests indicate most consumers prefer enhanced fresh chicken, said Bill Roenigk of the National Chicken Council, whose star member is Arkansas chicken giant Tyson Foods, a chicken-enhancer.
But Mattos contends heightened flavor only partly explains why processors like to enhance fresh chicken.
"It adds shelf life," he said. "And (processors) make more money off of it" because the water adds weight.
Though fierce competition among chicken processors might appear to be propelling the California Poultry Federation's campaign, the organization insists that's not the case.
Yet its leading member, California-based Foster Farms, faces growing competition from Tyson while touting its own brand as "natural," with no added solution.
The West Coast's largest chicken processor, Foster Farms is also Washington's largest, with a plant in Kelso and sells lots of chicken in Seattle-area stores.
Growing trend
The association's campaign comes amidst a growing flood of poultry and meat products, both fresh and frozen, with added attractions, ranging from those simple water/salt/phosphate solutions to more complex marinades and seasonings.
Some pork roasts, pork loin chops, turkey, corned beef briskets, ball-tip steak and assorted other cuts are getting the flavor treatment with spices, herbs and marinades.
Weight-wise, the added liquids can be sizeable. For instance, one brand of lemon/garlic-seasoned center-cut pork loin fillet says it contains "up to 30 percent of a patented flavoring solution."
For home cooks pressed for time or short on confidence, the additions boost flavor and help take the guesswork out of seasoning meat. Something else may also be pushing the trend, suggests Robert Post, director of labeling and consumer protection for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"A lot of (meat) products today are trying to meet the demand for less fat. When you have less fat, you have less flavor" — and the additions help, Post said. Both the sodium and the phosphates in the added chicken solution, for instance, are flavor protectors and help retain juiciness, he said.
While marinades of all sorts tend to boost prices, meat packages generally make the additions obvious. Not so with much of the enhanced fresh chicken, the California Chicken Federation contends in arguing for more prominent labels.
Checking labels
A check of enhancement labels by The Seattle Times revealed a range of print sizes — some tiny and easy to miss, others noticeably larger.
Processors who add the solution contend existing labels are adequate.
"I think we would say that it is already very clearly labeled. We are making absolutely no attempt to hide it. We don't think anyone is being misled or deceived," said Archie Schaffer, spokesman for Tyson, the world's largest poultry processor. He said Tyson adds the solution to some, but not all, of its fresh chicken, depending on what its customers — supermarkets — request.
"Some want it, some don't," Schaffer said.
Those who do, besides Wal-Mart, include the Northwest's Fred Meyer chain (owned by the Kroger Co.). Fred Meyer offers enhanced chicken because "it keeps the moistness in the bird and leads to a better eating experience," said a spokeswoman.
Mount Vernon-based Draper Valley Farms, this state's second-largest chicken processor, also adds the solution to some, but not all, of its fresh chicken, depending on customer requests, said president Rick Koplowitz. Besides its own brand, Draper processes chicken for certain store brands, such as Safeway's Butcher's Cut brand, which is enhanced.
Even Foster Farms, which supports the California Poultry Federation's campaign, produces enhanced chicken for some store brands, as requested, said Mattos. The Foster Farms brand, however, is not enhanced.
Like the trade organization, Foster Farms claims that competition from the likes of Tyson has nothing to do with its support of the labeling campaign.
"I think people want to know up front (about the added ingredients). When the consumer goes to the fresh-meat case, he expects to get something in its natural state," said Foster Farms president Don Jackson.
After completing consumer research on the issue, the poultry federation will petition the USDA to require more prominent labeling, Mattos said.
Such a labeling change would affect both fresh and frozen poultry and would require public notice and hearings, said a USDA official.
Judith Blake: jblake@seattletimes.com