Beef and bone meal
Beef and bone meal, as stated by AAFCO, is the rendered product from beef tissues, including bone, exclusive of any added blood, hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure, stomach and rumen contents, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices.
It is a byproduct made from beef parts which are not suitable for human consumption and used in pet foods. It can incorporate the entire cow, including the bones, but the quality cuts of meat are always removed. This is an inexpensive, low quality ingredient used to boost the protein percentage.
In Europe, the vast majority of beef and bone meal is now used as a fossil-fuel replacement for renewable energy generation, as a fuel in cement kilns, landfilling or incineration.
Sources
- Fernando, T. 1992. Blood meal, meat and bone meal and tallow. In Inedible meat by-products, Essex, England: Elsevier Science Publishers Ltd., 81-112.
- The Dog food Project