'Pink slime' meat swap held at Fresh & Easy

LOS ANGELES

Customers can swap their meat for beef without "pink slime" while supplies last, and it doesn't matter if the ground beef was purchased at another place.

The event is taking place at all Fresh & Easy stores for Wednesday only, and the limit is one 2-pound package per customer.

"Pink slime" is a controversial ammonia-treated filler commonly added to some ground beef products.

Tyson Foods says the negative publicity over the filler has hurt demand and will reduce beef supply in the long term.

On Monday, Beef Products Inc., the company that makes the filler, suspended operations at all but one plant where the ingredient is made.

Several major supermarket chains around the country have pulled the product from their shelves, including Kroger, which operates Ralphs and Food 4 Less, and Supervalu, which operates Albertsons and Lucky, and Safeway.

The product has been used for years, but a recent ABC News investigation found that 70 percent of ground beef sold in the U.S. contains "pink slime." The trimmings do not have to be on listed on the label.

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