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Obviously I'm wary about eating anything prepacked/preserved, but this was like two bucks and could come in handy during dire straits.

Tyson Naturally Hickory Smoked Bacon - Ready to Serve! Fully Cooked!

I know it's from an industrialized, sad, feedlot animal BUT sometimes that's the best I can do. I'm wondering more about the ingredients: cured with water, salt, sugar, sodium phosphate, sodium erythorbate, sodium nitrate.

Other than sugar and nitrates (again, I know this isn't ideal food) does anything else look particularly dangerous?

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Animal torture is about the farthest from paleo you can get. – Danielle Jul 29 2011 at 18:10
I wouldn't, and I'm not even harcore paleo. First, as has been said already, Tyson is terrible. Second, "sodium phosphate, sodium erythorbate, sodium nitrate" should be avoided. When I eact ham that has preservatives in it I try to drink green tea with the meal to inhibit nitrosamine formation. jhs.pharm.or.jp/data/52(3)/52_211.pdf – xjhues Jul 29 2011 at 18:23
I found a nitrate free version produced by Oscar Meyer at the local grocer. It was actually cheaper than the regular stuff, so I grabbed a few packs. Like others said below, do the best you can with what you've got. If time is an issue, I've found it convenient to pre-cook some things. Hardboiled eggs for breakfast or on salads, for instance. When I make bacon, I usually just cook the whole pack and put whatever I don't eat into the fridge to reheat through the week. Tastes great crumbled on top of a salad or even in an omelette the next day. – Jessica Jul 30 2011 at 6:38

11 Answers

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The only real problem with it is the somewhat high levels of linoleic acid in bacon, but that's true of all pork. Nitrates are not a problem - you would get more from a stalk of celery than a pack of bacon. The rest of the ingredients are not a problem in the amounts you would get - but I wouldn't recommend eating a lot of it. Tyson does suck as a company, but so does ADM. And Monsanto seems especially evilz.

I really wouldn't worry about it. I take the approach of making small changes over time that add up to better food quality. For example, I have sources for pastured chicken eggs direct from farmers whose farms I've been to (and other farmer's at farmer's markets that seem reputable), but I still eat regular cheapo eggs due to convenience. But I am working to get all my food from better sources. It's not easy when job/commute/wife/kids suck up most of my time, but it's worth the effort in terms of my health.

Oh! And to actually answer your question... Well, if it was in front of me, I would probably eat it. But I don't think I'll buy it in the first place - I prefer to cook my bacon. We usually have bacon once every two weeks and its Oscar Mayer, cuz that's what the wife buys... (Sometimes I'll get some awesome pastured bacon at the farmer's market, but nobody else in the house likes it but me. Hmmm, maybe that's not such a problem, now that I think about it. Sounds like a trip tomorrow!)

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 Nitrates in celery are not the same as nitrates in bacon. When you cook nitrates, the heat creates nitrosamines, which is the bigger concern. The formation of nnitrosamines can be blunted by adding some form of ascorbic acid (VitC), but many companies do not practice that. Since most fruits/veggies have some natural VitC, the nitrates are not a problem, even if you cook them, and some studies show that the naturally occuring nitrates like that can be helpful. Personally, I still choose nitrate free bacon because I would never eat raw bacon. – Jack Kronk Jul 29 2011 at 15:40
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 How are they different? Yes, cooking them can be an issue. Nitrate free bacon still has nitrates from the celery juice or whatever else they use to hide the fact that it still has nitrates (usually more, in fact). – Dave S. Jul 29 2011 at 16:36
coopfoodstore.coop/content/… – Dave S. Jul 29 2011 at 16:39
@Dave S - that article you linked also says sat fats are bad.. – xjhues Jul 29 2011 at 18:15
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 The formation of nitrosamines are in TINY quantities in cooked bacon. If there's anything wrong with Bacon it's probably the curing in general, pickled and salted food are both known to increase the rates of gastric cancer. A great review on nitrates: junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2008/07/… – sarah-ann Jul 29 2011 at 18:19
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If I can manage, I will never eat anything from Tyson ever again. Furthermore, I would never intentionally buy anything made by Tyson for anyone else to eat either. My preference would be to have $0.00 of my money go to that company.

"does anything else look particularly dangerous?"

Have you seen Food, Inc.?

To drive my point home one more time, I will not support Tyson.

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+1 Tyson Foods is disgusting. – Olivia Jul 29 2011 at 14:52
See, this is why I asked. My brain didn't connect Tyson fully cooked bacon with Tyson awful feedlot chicken. – Jessica G Jul 29 2011 at 20:00
well it shouldn't... unelss this was chicken bacon. i just feel like buying their product is supporting so much of what I am so staunchly against. sure, it's probably from nasty and poorly treated pigs. the fact that it's not 'the best bacon choice' with regard to health and everything takes a back seat to the real core problem I have with it. – Jack Kronk Jul 29 2011 at 20:35
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 If the executives want to operate Tyson like a evil company with no regard to human, animal, or planetary health, then I will vehemently stand against what they barf out as an operation and everything else they represent. Personally, I'd like to see them get taken down, HARD... right along with Monsanto. – Jack Kronk Jul 29 2011 at 20:36
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I think that you should just strive to do the best you can do with what you have. Not all of us can afford the heathliest foods at all times in our lives.

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It's better to go without garbage food than waste money buying it...Heck you can buy vegetables or fruit that would be healthier than eating the precooked garbage bacon. – Tim Jul 30 2011 at 6:12
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No. I would not eat it. Honestly I would eat oatmeal(soaked of course!) before I would eat this but my personal priorities are slightly different from most around here. A few years ago, however, I would have eaten it with great pleasure and probably did.

I agree with Annie that your only obligation is to do the best you can. That is all we can ask of ourselves. Accept yourself where you are today and continue to look for ways to get better and do better. Eat your bacon and enjoy it.

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Meh, you're not eating it all the time, I wouldn't sweat it!

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That's what I said, but with a lot less words. – Dave S. Jul 29 2011 at 15:10
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No, because:

1) As everyone else has pointed out, I'd rather not give Tyson any of my money or support factory farming of animals.

2) I think one of the biggest problems with north american food culture is the total disconnect with food and unreasonable expectations re: cooking times and such, and the expectation that most of our food should be pre-cooked or take at most 5 minutes to prepare. The convenience food mindset is part of what's hurting us, in my opinion. That's why I don't like to buy products like this. Even if they're not produced by Tyson.

If it was so important to me to have food available instead of waiting hours to eat, I would make sure to cook something and take it with me before I left the house. Bacon takes such a short time to cook from raw. But I just remember that being a little hungry won't kill me.

That said it isn't like eating some crappy quality bacon occasionally is going to hurt you. If it's what prevents you from diving headfirst into a cake because you're ravenous, I'd say go for it and don't worry about it.

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No unless the Tysons are, like, family or something. Ick.

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Oh that made me laugh! – Dave S. Jul 29 2011 at 15:10
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I wouldn't. To me it looks over processed and over packaged, way over packaged. What you would do is another question, and depends on your needs, values and circumstances.

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I would rather fast for 3 days, than eat that garbage!!

Tyson and Hormel are 2 of the worst companies on this planet with regards to how they treat animals, and their workers!!

It just isn't worth it to eat that crap.

You'd be better off getting a burger off the dollar menu at a fast food place than eating this junk. At least with the burger you can get extra veggies and remove the bun!

I understand about doing what you can do, but some things aren't worth that!!

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I only wish I had your intensity. – Dave S. Jul 29 2011 at 15:09
What's stopping you Dave?? – Tim Jul 30 2011 at 6:09
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You should really check out the Applegate products! Nitrate free, uncured bacon. They even have grass fed beef hot dogs! We eat bacon once a week, as a treat, because there are definitely more nutritious meat choices! But it is much better than grains!

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yeah but the OP is asking about this precooked bacon. She probably already knows where to buy the type of raw bacon she prefers. – Olivia Jul 29 2011 at 18:09
The irony is that I actually don't buy most Applegate products because they don't disclose all their ingredients (hot dogs contain "spices") and/or use carageenan (in their sliced turkey, e.g.). But their bacon is darn good!! – Jessica G Jul 29 2011 at 19:58
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I've actually bought this stuff out of necessity. I needed more things to eat for breakfast in the field (sea kayaking guide so I needed fast no-cook, extremely heat resistant food) and it was ok. Its REALLY salty. Like so salty its hard to eat. And it tastes weird. I took it paddling and ended up not eating much of it.

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