Is McDonald's McRib sandwich cancer inducing?

Recently I came across an article posted by Living Traditionally (https://livingtraditionally.com), that charged McDonald's with selling a McRib product that contained over 70 ingredients! Another site – Mercola (www.mercola.com) posted an article charging that this popular sandwich contained the growth hormone 'ractopamine' – a substance that had been banned in many countries. Truthfully, I was very concerned as I've eaten many of my share! So, I contacted McDonald's direct to find out the truth. 

While I was waiting for an answer, I copied their published ingredient list and posted it here. Truthfully, I could not find anything like what the other sites were complaining about – Sure the McRib is not the most healthy choice of food to eat, but then again how many fast food products are?

McRib Ingredient list:

MCRIB PORK PATTY

Ingredients: Pork, Water, Salt, Dextrose, Rosemary Extract.

HOMESTYLE ROLL

Ingredients: Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Sugar, Yeast, Soybean Oil, Contains 2% or Less: Corn Meal, Salt, Wheat Gluten, Mono and Diglycerides, Enzymes, Ascorbic Acid, Calcium Propionate (Preservative).

Contains: WHEAT.

MCRIB SAUCE

Ingredients: Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Tomato Paste, Distilled Vinegar, Molasses, Natural Smoke Flavor, Modified Food Starch, Salt, Sugar, Spices, Soybean Oil, Xanthan Gum, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Chili Pepper, Sodium Benzoate (Preservative), Caramel Color, Beet Powder.

PICKLE SLICES

Ingredients: Cucumbers, Water, Distilled Vinegar, Salt, Calcium Chloride, Alum, Potassium Sorbate (Preservative), Natural Flavors, Polysorbate 80, Extractive of Turmeric (Color).

SLIVERED ONIONS

Ingredients: Onions.
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Once again, I found nothing in that list to generate much in the way of dietary concern. Following is a snippet of the article published by Mercola....

---------------------------------------Segment of Mercola article-----------------------------------

• Sneaky “tricks of the trade” employed by the meat industry include “pink slime” made of otherwise unusable scraps, meat glue, and reconstituted meat—all of which fool you into thinking you’re buying something of higher quality than you are!

• McDonald’s seasonally-available McRib sandwich contains more than 70 ingredients, including a chemical used in gym shoes and other items requiring a rubbery substance. And the pork is actually a restructured meat product made from the less expensive innards and scraps from the pig.
  
  
• Russia has recently banned U.S. meat supplies after discovering it contains ractopamine—a beta agonist drug that increases protein synthesis, thereby making the animal more muscular. This reduces the fat content of the meat. Ractopamine is known to affect the human cardiovascular system, may cause food poisoning, and is thought to be responsible for hyperactivity, muscle breakdown, and increased death and disability in livestock.
  
  
• As much as 20 percent of ractopamine remains in the meat you buy from the supermarket. Despite potential health risks, the drug is used in 45 percent of U.S. pigs, 30 percent of ration-fed cattle, and an unknown percentage of turkeys.
  

I'm currently awaiting (2 days now) the response from McDonald's Corporate office and will share their response here when I do... I also contacted the McDonald's franchise located in Forsyth MO and was told that they were not currently offering it.

Here is the response or non-response I received:

Thank you for taking the time to contact McDonald's for ingredient and allergen information.

To obtain the most current ingredient and allergen information for McDonald's standard menu items, visit the website at www.mcdonalds.com. Available allergen information will always be listed on the menu item's ingredient statement.

McDonald's has worked with Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) to help consolidate all allergen information within our ingredient statements. FARE encourages customers with food allergies to regularly read ingredient statements because ingredients may have changed. Again, McDonald's recommends you visit the website, www.mcdonalds.com, for the most current information about our products. We also recommend that you speak with your health care provider if the information you are seeking cannot be found on our website or printed materials.

We also want you to know that, despite taking precautions, normal kitchen operations may involve some shared cooking and preparation areas and utensils, and the possibility exists for your food items to come in contact with other food products, including other allergens.

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact McDonald's and we look forward to serving you again soon.

Myriah
Customer Satisfaction Representative

So, my take away was the fact that McDonald's did not expressly deny the specific question concerning Ractopamine - Sometimes you have to read between the lines...
 
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