The truth about what’s in KFC’s grilled chicken

Carcinogenic Chemicals!  Boy, makes me want some (not).

In a report released today by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), tests of KFC’s new Kentucky Grilled Chicken has been found to have substantial (!) amounts of a carcinogenic chemicals in all the samples tested.  Since this discovery, PCRM has requested that KFC withdraw the product from it’s stores.

A scientist from PCRM visited six different KFC stores and obtained samples from each location.  The samples were then sent to an independent testing laboratory.  All twelve samples were found to contain PhIP, a chemical classified as a cacinogen by the Federal Government.  This chemical is part of the heterocyclic amines (HCAs) family which has been linked to several forms of cancer, including breast cancer, in dozens of scientific studies.

NO SAFE LEVEL OF INGESTION HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED.  Again, every sample tested positive for at least one type of HCA.  Very scary!

Kristie Sullivan, M.P.H., is a PCRM toxicologist has this to say about the report:

“Just as the fat and cholesterol in fried chicken have prompted concerns about heart attacks and obesity, the carcinogenic chemicals found in Kentucky Grilled Chicken raise serious concerns about cancer risk…  No parent would knowingly serve carcinogens to a child, and parents have no idea these chemicals are in KFC products. We are asking KFC to withdraw Kentucky Grilled Chicken.”

These chemicals, PhIP and other HCAs, they don’t exist naturally in chicken (naturally).   They form when the animal muscle is cooked at high temperatures.  The International Agency for Research on Cancer and the National Toxicology Program administered by the National Institute of Health have all identified PhIP as carcinogenic.

And this all leads me to the whole…you got it:  Oprah-Gate.  Oh yeah.  Remember when Oprah was giving away free meals from KFC? Well, she apparently gave people more than free food.  She also gave them a chance for cancer.  How…nice?  PCRM was kind enough to send Oprah the results of their tests.  Let’s see what happens…

Meanwhile it’s just another excellent reason to become vegan!

For a copy of PCRM’s test results or an interview with Ms. Sullivan or another PCRM expert, please contact Jeanne McVey at 202-527-7316 or [email protected].