Human and Rat DNA Found in Burgers, Experts Say There Is Nothing Much to Worry About

On Tuesday, Clear Labs the same food analysts that discovered a tenth of all vegetarian hot dogs contain some quantity of meat, released another extensive food reports, and this time they specifically focused on hamburgers. With the use of their own uniquely designed method, they found that 13.6 percent of the samples had noticeable flaws ranging from contamination to missing ingredients.

According to Medical Daily, the lab tested 258 samples of hamburger meat from 79 brands and 22 retailers. They found that a number of the samples had some issues with nasty components that aren't considered hygienic or safe for human consumption. This was amplified in veggie brands where 23.6 percent of the 89 vegetarian products tested revealing problems, including two samples containing trace amounts of beef DNA.

"Vegetarian products may not be perceived as a traditional food safety risk, but our findings suggest that vegetarian products are problematic from both a safety and quality perspective," stated the report.

On the more disgusting end of the scale, the lab revealed that there was a frozen burger product with human DNA in it, and three burger products have rat DNA. Germ contamination was higher, though still relatively small, at 4.3 percent. Some of the pathogens detected included E.coli, Yersinia enterocolitica, and Clostridium perfrigens.

Burgers found with human and rat DNA, study finds https://t.co/l7lenFGGrA pic.twitter.com/Qh4CS6eGUZ

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Inquistr mentioned that scientists at Clear Labs relied on genomic sequencing, which examines any organic matter to its DNA level. The company demanded to examine the samples for their nutritional content accuracy. These include calories, carbohydrates, fat, and protein that are mentioned on the products were tested for authenticity. However, much to their surprise, the result of their findings revealed the presence of some greatly sickening components.

Although these discoveries may be a cause for people to be alarmed, both the report as well as outside experts noted that there's not too much to be worried about. In the case of human and rat DNA, it is highly unlikely that they represent any harm to customers, and they may fall within the acceptable range of contamination set up by regulatory agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

According to Dr. Michael Doyle, director of the Center for Food Safety at the University of Georgia, the presence of these specific germs may not mean anything, in part because it's impossible to tell whether they were even alive at the time of the testing. "Finding the DNA of Salmonella or E.coli from a dead cell is not very helpful," Doyle told the Genetic Experts News Service.

"Secondly, the pathogens they find, such as Yersinia enterocolitica and Aeromonas hydrophila, are not of common concern in foods. In terms of Clostridium perfrigens, you usually need to have millions of cells in the food in order to cause illness. And it's not uncommon to find low levels in meats, which contain some C. perfringens naturally."