Tester Pitches Montana Beef As Taco Bell Alternative

WASHINGTON -- There are beefier issues for politicians to address, but there are few other issues that deal so directly with beef.

On Monday, Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) became one of the first members of Congress to take on the controversy over Taco Bell's so-called beef product, releasing a statement pitching his home state's meat as a more authentic alternative.

"When I go to a restaurant, I expect the beef I order to be beef -- not 'filler' -- and my guess is most Montanans, and Americans feel the same way," Tester said in the statement. "Montana's ranchers raise the best cattle in the world. If Taco Bell needs to beef up, they can give their customers the highest quality meat around by using Montana beef, and in the process, supporting agriculture jobs in Montana. And that's a win-win."

Taco Bell is facing a serious legal problems over allegations that its beef is, well, not real. The fast-food giant denies the accusation, saying that in addition to the spices and alternatives, its beef is 88-percent authentic cut. It's even launched an ad campaign pushing back against the lawsuit.

Tester didn't attempt to litigate the debate on Monday, just to benefit from it.

There may not be obvious political implications in the Taco Bell controversy, but the senator's statement is a prime example of how politicians can find a local hook in even the most disjointed of national issues. Tester is up for reelection in 2012, and getting any number of jobs from a spike in Montana beef sales certainly wouldn't hurt his chances.

Tester also has a personal stake in the issue. As The New York Times' Carl Hulse notes, the senator is a butcher who brings his own home cuts to Washington.

Comments

[IMDATRAINER]

07:39 AM on 02/08/2011

I'm tired of poeple saying that one reason fast food sells so well is due to price and the fact that it's affordable, or more affordable than healthier options. I disagree, while some do offer dollar menu's, every person I see that orders from it orders multiple items. And some of the "meals" can be upwards of $9. That's crazy. I can eat 5 - 6 healthy meals per day for under $10. Take a look how and stop using lame excuses to put garbage in your body.

www.angrytrainerfitness.com/2011/02/is-eating-healthy-really-too-expensive/

[IMDATRAINER]

04:27 PM on 02/07/2011

I remember years ago I had a client that visted a Taco Bell processing plant and he clearly stated " If you learn one thing from me it's never eat Taco Bell". That kind of stuck with me. I'm sure if we knew how most fast food was made and processed Americans would stop eating it (I hope) Maybe we need an undercover documentary to see exactly waht goes on in the food industry- kind of like "Scared Straight" for fast food? I did some research, and not all Taco Bell is terrible, but I think my findngs may surprise you. Take a look for yourself -www.angrytrainerfitness.com/2011/02/fast-food-fix-taco-bell/

[Grimway]

06:34 AM on 02/02/2011

The taco bell dog is in hiding at my house. He says he'll go back when he feels safe!

[onionboy]

03:26 AM on 02/02/2011

NEXT thing they'll tell me is that hamburgers aren't even made of ham.

[Slash14]

12:37 AM on 02/02/2011

Egypt, Deficit, Healthcare, 2 wars and the this m.0.r.o..n is worried about Taco bell???????????

[skraeling]

03:43 AM on 02/02/2011

no, he is worrying about the interests of the state he represents and I wish we had more like him.

[Slash14]

06:02 AM on 02/02/2011

Yeah a great waste of time. Guess they did not contribute to his campaign. What's next how much chicken in a chicken McNugget

[InYourWorld]

05:16 PM on 02/02/2011

Exactly, if our politicians spent more time helping the states that elected them then playing the political circus acts we actually might get somewhere.

[jenna2929]

04:07 AM on 02/04/2011

dont call him a m.o.ron im a veteran, i live in montana, and he has done so many great things for veterans and soldiers. you shouldnt make blanket statements about someone who you know nothing about. he's a great guy. i appreciate everything he and his people have done for me personally and for my fellow veterans and active duty soldiers, including my brother, whom he personally met on his recent trip to iraq and afghanistan....whos the m.o.ron?

[honeybear64]

10:28 PM on 02/01/2011

I have a hard time believing that all this Taco Bell hoopla would really come as a surprise to anyone even remotely familiar with cost and pricing strategies in the food service industry. Does anyone honestly think that, factoring in food costs, labor, taxes, on-site overhead, licensing fees, rent, advertisin­g, etc., etc., etc., that a restaurant can achieve an acceptable profit margin on a 99 cent beef taco if the stuff inside it is anything but cheap feedlot crap and filler ingredient­s?

It's not just Taco Bell, of course - do you really think the meat in a cheeseburg­er you can pay a dollar for at McDonald's is from a fully pastured, humanely and healthily raised steer, rather than from bits of hundreds of different cows "finished" in a feedlot, standing ankle deep in their each other's excrement, and spent dairy cows that weren't even raised to provide quality beef?

People pay next to nothing for what ought, theoretica­lly, to be a fairly expensive product, and then act surprised that they got what they paid for.

Get food scientists to season something to the customer's taste with God-only-k­nows what all additives, and Americans will eat just about anything, no matter what it's doing to animals, the planet, or even their own health, as long as it's cheap, quick, and convenient­.

Is it not hugely ironic that the mascot hawking Taco Bell's food is . . . a DOG?

[SageSpencer]

10:00 PM on 02/01/2011

I like Chipotle's Barbacoa Crispy Tacos.

[FTracy3]

05:43 PM on 02/01/2011

Where's the BEEF? Yo quiero Taco Bell!

[gevan]

05:16 PM on 02/01/2011

I have also heard a rumor that buffalo wings aren't made of buffalo.

[Slash14]

12:34 AM on 02/02/2011

good one

[Johnniedog]

07:35 AM on 02/02/2011

And that Girl-Scout Cookies are not made from real Girl-Scouts.

[Allan888]

05:10 PM on 02/01/2011

Aw man those crappy little tacos really are crappy. Surprise.

[BobVADemHawk]

03:09 PM on 02/01/2011

My compliments to Sen. Tester (D-MT) on his take of this subject. Any restaurant selling food in the U.S. should be mandated to use American food products. Let the Red Chinese choke on their own lead tainted crap. This is America. We're capable of better.

[jsarets]

03:13 PM on 02/01/2011

That's a dangerous trade policy for a nation whose largest export in cheap food.

[FalstaffsMind]

05:45 PM on 02/01/2011

There goes all the produce grown our winter.

[deepthicket]

03:06 PM on 02/01/2011

Oddly enough, I haven't seen one post yet thanking TB for promoting vegetarianism and healthy eating by replacing all that fatty beef with vegetable protein. Nor have I seen a thank you from PETA for the millions and millions of cows spared by TB's beef replacement strategy. I have seen lots of posts along the lines of "I hate TB. Every time I eat there it makes me sick." Which does make one wonder about the criteria these bozos use for choosing a place to eat.

[jsarets]

03:15 PM on 02/01/2011

TB does not use vegetable protein. They use oat fiber as a binder.

[deepthicket]

03:23 PM on 02/01/2011

Healthier still; oat fiber is the magic bullet of the new millennium.

[realpolitic]

12:54 PM on 02/01/2011

I am glad with uprisings breaking out throughout the Middle East Tester is taking on the Taco Bell controversy.

[skraeling]

06:53 PM on 02/01/2011

And, well you should, since what happens in America is more important to America than what happens in Egypt....

[realpolitic]

10:18 AM on 02/02/2011

Really, well you have to live a little in the modern world.  If the Suez Canal closes your gas will go up astronomically. Then you'll be complaining to your politicians.

[skraeling]

03:46 AM on 02/02/2011

Me, too. What Americans do is more vital to us than what happens in Cairo....Good for Tester...I wish we had more like him...My senior senator doesn't even live in the state anymore and she favors israel and torture more than our interests.

[realpolitic]

10:19 AM on 02/02/2011

Your senior senator hasn't taken sides in the Taco Bell wars?

[Montcalms Revenge]

12:33 PM on 02/01/2011

Taco Bell: Less beef... more Chihuahua in the tacos! ;-)