Talk about a frivolous lawsuit! These two ladies claim that they have been misled by the information on the label of Costco’s famous rotisserie chicken that states “no preservatives.” Why? Because the listed additives include sodium phosphate and carrageenan. That, they say, merited a lawsuit! They go on to say that Costco "has systematically cheated customers out of tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars by falsely advertising its Kirkland Signature Seasoned Rotisserie chicken as containing no preservatives.” Really? Who exactly is doing the cheating here? Let’s start with the fact that sodium phosphate and carrageenan are not preservatives!
Preservatives are substances added to food, other than salt, sugars, vinegar or spices, that prevent spoilage by curbing the growth of bacteria, molds or fungi. It is rather strange that preservatives are thought of as undesirable bedfellows. They are not added to foods on a manufacturer’s whim. They are added because microbes and the toxins they can produce are not regarded by our body as welcome intruders. A bout with Salmonella, Listeria, Campylobacter, E. coli or Clostridium perfringens hardly makes for a pleasant experience.
Benzoates, sorbates, propionates, nitrites, nitrates and sulfites are common antimicrobial agents that can guard against such an encounter. As required by Health Canada and the Food and Drug Administration in the U.S., these additives have proven their safety by passing through the regulatory hoops and hurdles. Are there some nuances here? Of course there are. Health is a very complex matter. Some individuals may have an adverse reaction to sulfites or sorbates, and there is an issue about nitrites forming potentially carcinogenic nitrosamines. But as with any question about the links between nutrition and health, it always comes down to a risk versus benefit analysis. And in the case of preservatives, benefits win. Additives that prevent fats from going rancid such as butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT) or tertiary-butyl hydroquinone (TBHQ) can also be considered to be preservatives even though they do not have antimicrobial activity. Â
Let’s set aside the misguided “no preservatives” issue and address the presence of sodium phosphate and carrageenan in the Costco chicken. Rotisserie chickens, whether at Costco or elsewhere, are injected with a brine solution that contains salt, sugar, starch, spices, carrageenan and sodium phosphate, although in Canada carrageenan is not included. In meat, water is trapped between protein molecules, but after slaughter proteins contract and water molecules are squeezed out. Phosphates prevent the collapse of the protein network and water is retained instead of being released. This makes for a juicier texture, improved tenderness and less water loss on cooking.
The question that immediately springs to mind is whether the amount of phosphate entering our body from rotisserie chicken can cause a problem. Phosphates are essential for numerous biochemical processes, and our bodies are loaded with them. They serve as electrolytes, meaning that they help conduct electrical impulses that govern the functioning of our heart, lungs and muscles. But they do more than that! Phosphates are needed by our cells to make DNA, RNA and adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the molecule our bodies rely on for energy production. There is still more. Phosphates are needed for bone formation as well as for the functioning of many enzymes. Simply put, we cannot live without phosphates. And where do we get them? From our diet. Meat, dairy, nuts, seeds, legumes and whole grains all contain phosphates, so a shortage in the absence of extreme malnutrition is virtually impossible.
However, just because phosphates are essential for life does not mean that an excess is harmless. Too much phosphate in the blood, or “hyperphosphatemia” can result in calcium being pulled out of bones, and a calcium phosphate complex can deposit in arteries increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease. But the body is well equipped to prevent this from happening. Our kidneys are very efficient in filtering out excess phosphate from the blood and secreting it in the urine. That’s why hyperphosphatemia is seen almost exclusively in people with kidney disease and such patients have to be counselled to adhere to a low phosphate diet.
As far as the general population goes, phosphate in the diet is not an issue. It is true that phosphate as an additive is more efficiently absorbed than naturally occurring phosphate. That’s because in meat and dairy phosphate is bound to proteins, and in plants to phytates, so only about 50% is absorbed while over 90% of phosphate added to food is absorbed. But even if all of the 300-400 mg of phosphate in a serving of rotisserie chicken is absorbed, it does not lead to an excess in the blood. A diet that is almost exclusively processed food can have up to 1200 mg of phosphates, but even this is easily handled by healthy kidneys. The bottom line here is that phosphates in Costco chicken do not present any sort of risk to the general population but people with chronic kidney disease do have to monitor their intake of phosphates.
Let’s now turn to carrageenan, the other “villain” named in the lawsuit. Chemically it is a “polysaccharide,” a giant molecule made of simple sugars joined together in a chain. It occurs in seaweed from where it can be extracted and used as a gelling agent thanks to its ability to bind water. Like phosphates, it traps water in the chicken, so the meat stays juicy and does not shrink from water loss. The use of seaweed to thicken foods dates back to ancient China, but a long history of use cannot be equated to proof of safe use. The only way to determine safety is by proper studies. And that has been done for carrageenan.
This complex molecule is virtually immune to digestion and traverses the small intestine to end up in the colon. It is a form of fiber! Some bacteria in the colon can digest carrageenan and produce short chain fatty acids that then enter the bloodstream and help improve immune function. Why then is the social media filled with “influencers” who scream about carrageenan causing inflammation or even cancer? As usual, it comes from misunderstanding the science. In this case that can be traced back to laboratory studies demonstrating that under highly acidic conditions carrageenan breaks down into smaller fragments. These degraded carrageenan fragments are termed “poligeenans,” some of which in high doses have been shown to cause inflammation as well as colorectal tumours in rats. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) list poligeenans in category 2B, “possibly carcinogenic to humans.”
But here is the kicker, not understood by the influencers. Poligeenan is far from food grade carrageenan and is not allowed as a food additive! It is used by researchers to study inflammation in animal subjects. Carrageenan cannot be degraded to poligeenans in the human body. That only happens under harsh laboratory conditions. There have been some claims from individuals who suffer from inflammatory bowel disease that they experience irritation when consuming carrageenan, but these claims have not been confirmed by human trials. Basically, carrageenan is a form of fiber that has beneficial effects.
If you are bent on finding a legitimate concern about rotisserie chicken, there is one, but it is not about phosphates or carrageenan. It is about sodium! And there is plenty of it there! A 200-gram portion (most people would eat more) can have as much as 1000 mg of sodium. That is a significant amount considering that a healthy diet should not exceed 1500 mg sodium a day. Removing the skin can reduce this by about 15% and that even has the added benefit of removing charred parts that contain heterocyclic amines and polycyclic hydrocarbons which are potential carcinogens.
Where does this leave us when it comes to the Costco chicken? With two scientifically illiterate individuals who have frightened a lot of people with their frivolous lawsuit. What they are after is money. That is easily discernable from their statement that “they wouldn't have purchased the chicken, or would have paid less for it, had they known it contained preservatives.” So, it seems their health concerns evaporate if they can save a few dollars. Given that in business the customer is always right even when they are wrong, Costco has removed the “no preservatives” claim. I actually do not mind that because that claim implies that preservatives are dangerous.
What this discussion has done is stimulate me to have Costco chicken for supper, although I’ll have only one leg and I’ll remove the skin. I am though irritated by the claim on the label that the chicken “contains no added hormones or steroids.” No chicken does. It’s illegal to add these! More chicken misinformation running amuck!Â
