Bacon The cured belly of a swine carcass. If meat from other portions of the carcass is used, the product name must be qualified to identify the portions, e.g., “Pork Shoulder Bacon.” “Certified” refers to products that have been treated for trichinae.
Bacteria Living single-cell organisms. Bacteria can be carried by water, wind, insects, plants, animals, and people and survive well on skin and clothes and in human hair. They also thrive in scabs, scars, the mouth, nose, throat, intestines, and room-temperature foods. Often bacteria are maligned as the causes of human and animal disease, but there are certain types which are beneficial for all types of living matter.
Baste To moisten meat or other food while cooking. Melted butter or other fat, meat drippings, or liquid such as stock is spooned or brushed on food as it cooks to moisten it.
Basted or Self Basted Bone-in poultry products that are injected or marinated with a solution containing butter or other edible fat, broth, stock or water plus spices, flavor enhancers and other approved substances must be labeled as basted or self basted. The maximum added weight of approximately 3% solution before processing is included in the net weight on the label. Label must include a statement identifying the total quantity and common or usual name of all ingredients in the solution, e.g., “Injected with approximately 3% of a solution of ____________ (list of ingredients).” Use of terms “basted” or “self-basted” on boneless poultry products is limited to 8% of the weight of the raw poultry before processing.
Beef Meat from full-grown cattle about two years old. “Baby beef” and “calf” are interchangeable terms used to describe young cattle weighing about 700 pounds that have been raised mainly on milk and grass.
Beef Patties “Beef Patties” shall consist of chopped fresh and/or frozen beef with or without the addition of beef fat and/or seasonings.
Beef Suet Hard fat from kidneys and loin, mainly used for tallow. May be labeled as “Beef Fat” or “Beef Suet.”
Biosecurity Biosecurity refers to policies and measures taken to protect this nation’s food supply and agricultural resources from both accidental contamination and deliberate attacks of bioterrorism. Now viewed as an emerging threat, bioterrorism might include such acts as introducing pests intended to kill U.S. food crops; spreading a virulent disease among animal production facilities; and poisoning air, water, food, and blood supplies. The federal government is now increasing its efforts to improve biosecurity to lessen the vulnerabilities to bioterrorism threats.
Biotechnology Agricultural biotechnology is a collection of scientific techniques, including genetic engineering, that are used to create, improve, or modify plants, animals, and microorganisms. Using conventional techniques, such as selective breeding, scientists have been working to improve plants and animals for human benefit for hundreds of years. Modern techniques now enable scientists to move genes (and therefore desirable traits) in ways they could not before - and with greater ease and precision.
Bioterrorism Intentional use of biological agents or toxins to cause a public health emergency or to threaten the integrity of the food and agricultural system.
Bison The National Bison Association encourages the name bison to differentiate the American buffalo from the Asian Water buffalo and African Cape buffalo. The American buffalo is not a true buffalo. Its scientific name is Bison and it belongs to the bovine family along with domestic cattle.
Botulism A rare but serious paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin that is produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. There are three main kinds of botulism, one of which is foodborne botulism caused by eating foods that contain the botulism toxin. Foodborne botulism can be especially dangerous because many people can be poisoned by eating a contaminated food. All forms of botulism can be fatal and are considered medical emergencies. Good supportive care in a hospital is the mainstay of therapy for all forms of botulism.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) Commonly known as “mad cow disease,” BSE is a slowly progressive, incurable disease affecting the central nervous system of cattle, first diagnosed in the United Kingdom in 1986. BSE belongs to a family of diseases known as the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). Consumption by cattle of animal feed containing TSE-contaminated ruminant protein has been cited as one possible means of transmission. Scientific evidence supports a causal relationship between BSE outbreaks in Europe and more than 120 recent European cases of a human TSE, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD). TSE animal diseases are found in the United States, including scrapie in sheep and goats and chronic wasting disease in deer and elk. Since 1989, USDA has prohibited the importation of live ruminants from countries where BSE is known to exist in native cattle. In 1997, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) prohibited the use of most mammalian protein in ruminant feeds.
Brine (Verb) To treat with or steep in brine. (Noun) A strong solution of water and salt, and a sweetener such as sugar, molasses, honey, or corn syrup may be added to the solution for flavor and to improve browning.
Brine Curing Brine curing (or wet curing) is the most popular way of producing hams. It is a wet cure whereby fresh meat is injected with a curing solution before cooking. Brining ingredients can be salt, sugar, sodium nitrite, sodium nitrate, sodium erythorbate, sodium phosphate, potassium chloride, water and flavorings. Smoke flavoring (liquid smoke) may also be injected with brine solution. Cooking may occur during this process.
Broiler or Fryer A broiler or fryer is a young chicken, usually under 13 weeks of age, of either sex, that is tender-meated with soft, pliable, smooth-textured skin and flexible breastbone cartilage.
