HENDERSON, Colo. – Birko’s Beefxide intervention has received approval from the US Department of Agriculture for use as an antimicrobial processing aid on beef carcasses, primals, cuts and trim. The company also received approval for its Porkxide and Lambxide interventions for use as antimicrobial processing aids on pork and lamb products, respectively.

USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a Letter of No Objection allowing Birko’s antimicrobial interventions to be used as a spray on all carcasses, primals, subprimals, cuts, trim and offal products, as well as unskinned livers, without labeling. These approvals will be included in the next update of the FSIS Directive 7120.1, “Safe and Suitable Ingredients Used in the Production of Meat, Poultry and Egg Products.”


Birko officials say its new interventions are approved by the Food and Drug Administration and all components of the formulas are GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe). The products are also suitable for use on products to be labeled as natural or organic.

“We’re tremendously excited about this approval,” said Elis Owens, Ph.D., Birko chemist/microbiologist. “It will open up new opportunities for Birko and provides meat producers with a new weapon in their food protection arsenal. As next generation antimicrobials, Beefxide and its sister products take the industry a step beyond the lactic acid that is widely used today. They offer similar antimicrobial efficacy to lactic acid at a lower use concentration and therefore offer a cost saving.”