'Mystery Meat' revealed: What are you really eating?
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}It’s the squeamish question we’d rather not know the answer to: What is really in those chicken nuggets or ham sandwich you’re chowing down on?
Texan-born photographer Peter Augustus has challenged our notions of what exactly is in mystery meat with a series of photographs showing the ingredient in its original form.
Augustus took the photos after moving to Hong Kong where he said one of the scenes that struck him the most was the meat in his local neighborhood.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“As a foreigner from a major city in the West, most of us seldom see anything that even closely represents what kind of animal we are eating when we purchase it – it is always prepackaged, nice and neat, showcased in an air-conditioned supermarket.”
“Being forced to pass by these meat shops on a daily basis with their pig heads, intestines, eyeballs and hearts hung on hooks out in the open lead me to challenge myself to view these shops as a normal place where actual food was being sourced every day, that ended up in my meal at a local restaurant.”
The result is a series of photographs that might just put you off your lunch.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}And remember, not all processed meats are created equal. They must meet certain federal safety standards, but be sure to check the label as USDA guidelines require a list of ingredients.