Consumer Preferences for Finely Textured Beef (FTB) in Ground Beef Formulations

Abstract

Inclusion of finely textured beef (FTB) in ground beef increases efficiency of the beef industry and decreases costs for consumers. However, following the "pink slime" media storm of 2012, consumers expressed severe misunderstanding of the safety of FTB as a food product. Since 2012, there has been evidence that FTB could increase the palatability of ground beef, potentially to the point that consumers might be willing to pay more for ground beef containing FTB. This study tested this hypothesis through a blind taste test by having participants eat sliders containing 0%, 15%, and the maximum inclusion of FTB, using their favorite condiments and toppings. Conditional logit modeling utilizing data from subsequent hypothetical choice questions and demographic information revealed that participants have no significant differences in taste preferences amongst the three ground beef types, even when taking gender, frequency of ground beef purchases, and status as an Oklahoma State University undergraduate student into account. Thus, inclusion of FTB does not seem to significantly alter the taste of ground beef when it is consumed in the typical hamburger scenario.