As a Home Economist and a Registered  Dietitian,  I am at times torn between loving food (and I mean ALL food – including the delicious crispy fat on a BBQ’d pork chop;  full fat Brie cheese with white crusty bread;  that yummy icing made out of sugar and lard on bakery cakes) and, well… being a Dietitian!

One  food that conflicts me is “seasoned” pork and chicken, which is not “seasoned” in the sense of having added spices or flavourings, as the name might suggest.  Instead, these products have been injected with a solution of water, sodium phosphate, and salt in an effort to preserve a tender texture, even if over-cooked or held warm for long periods.  Because pork and chicken are so lean, they can tend to become dry when cooked – not so with seasoned products.  The sodium phosphate bonds the water molecules to the protein, and the salt acts as an enabler in that process.  The intent, from the perspective of the food processor, is to enhance the eating experience.

The Home Economist sees seasoned pork and chicken as the perfect solution for those who are not overly skilled in the kitchen (no more shoe-leather pork chops) and for food service/restaurants needing to meet the demands of hungry customers who want their food “right now”.  Seasoned pork chops will be fork-tender, even if you’ve overcooked them. Catering managers love seasoned products, because seasoned chicken and pork can be held warm in a chafing dish for many hours at a banquet without becoming dry.  A conversation with Monda Rosenberg , food editor of Chatelaine and cookbook author, revealed that she prefers seasoned pork and recommends it over non-seasoned.

So what’s the downside?  The Dietitian in me cringes at the nutritional consequences of adding sodium phosphate and salt to an otherwise naturally low-in-sodium food. There is more than five times the amount of sodium in a seasoned product over a non-seasoned product.  A 100 g (3 oz) pork chop has about 55 mg of sodium (2% of your Daily Value), but the average seasoned pork chop contains about 300 mg of sodium per 100 g (3 oz) serving (13% Daily Value).  Considering all the attention given to lowering sodium in the food supply, and the astounding number of Canadians with high blood pressure, this is concerning.  Particularly if consumers are not given the choice between seasoned and not seasoned at their local grocery store, or if consumers are oblivious to the meaning of the word “seasoned” on their meat purchases.

If you haven’t noticed the tiny printed word “seasoned” on your meat and poultry purchases, look for it next time you shop.  Some grocery stores stock only seasoned chicken and pork, particularly in Ontario and now in Western Canada.  Other retailers have a variety of seasoned and “regular” chicken and pork, for lack of a better term.  Often seasoned products are less expensive, with the unseasoned products being marketed as “organic” or “hormone/antibiotic-free” at a higher price.

So what do you think of seasoned chicken and pork?  Is health always the priority when it comes to food?  Or is some sacrifice for ‘health’ acceptable when it means more convenient or tastier food?  Is it OK to charge more for food that has not been processed versus foods that have ingredients added?  Is it “buyer beware” or do food processors have some sort of responsibility for providing the healthiest foods possible, even when consumers are demanding convenience and taste as well?

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Kimberly Green is a graduate of the Human Ecology (Food and Nutrition) program at the University of Manitoba, and of the Masters in Applied Human Nutrition program at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax.  Kimberly is now a Registered Dietitian and a Professional Home Economist with the Communications & Consumer Marketing Division at Ontario Pork in Guelph, Ontario.