Lean ground beef in the Netherlands is often not lean at all

The fat percentages of lean or extra lean ground beef in Dutch supermarkets range from 8 to 15 percent. This means that the minced meat is fatter than is allowed under European rules, the Consumers' Association said on Monday. However, the supermarkets believe that the labels are incorrect and that the actual fat percentage is lower. The Consumers' Association sampled 62 minced meat varieties from twelve supermarket chains. Of these, only five products were found to contain less than 10 percent fat. There were also variants with more than 15 percent fat. According to the union, that is more than legally permitted and fatter than, for example, half-and-half, ordinary minced beef and sometimes even fatter than shoarma meat or spare ribs. The rules aren't very clear about how much fat can be in lean ground beef. For example, according to a European guideline, lean ground beef may contain a maximum of 7 percent fat. But if meat processors add something to it, for example water, it can ...