It might take a while, but chain letters eventually touch enough people. It’s been a while since I was fooled by one, but this one got me – for about an hour. Before you boycott Mc Donald’s read this.
Dr. Forrest’s reaction (PDF):
February 23, 2009
SUBJECT: Email concerning McDonald’s restaurants was NOT written by David Forrest
A chain email message regarding use of imported beef by McDonald’s restaurants has circulated in various forms for several years. One version of the chain email falsely identifies David Forrest as the author. David Forrest is not associated in any way with the contents of the chain email.
Web sites that have posted information regarding various versions of this chain email include:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/mcdbeef.asp
http://www.breakthechain.org/exclusives/mcbeef.html
Your efforts to curtail circulation of the chain email are appreciated
Sincerely,
David Forrest
979-845-3560
Kleberg
The chain letter that I received via e-mail from a friend with no relationship to Texas A&M:
Subject: Fw: Interesting about McDonalds
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 2009 07:55:09 -0700 (PDT)
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*Subject:* FW: Interesting about McDonalds
THIS IS A GOOD DECENT MAN WHO TOOK THE TIME TO WRITE THIS AND HE SIGNED THE STATEMENT AND INCLUDED HIS CONTACT INFO. READ ON.
I’m sure those of you who aren’t in the cattle business don’t understand the issues here. But to those of us whose living depends on the cattle market, selling cattle, raising the best beef possible… This is frustrating. This will keep us from ever stopping there again, even for a drink. The original message is from the Texas Cattle Feeders Association American cattle producers are very passionate about this.
McDonald’s claims that there is not enough beef in the USA to support their restaurants. Well, we know that is not so. Our opinion is they are looking to save money at our expense. The sad thing of it is that the people of the USA are the ones who made McDonald’s successful in the first place, but we are not good enough to provide beef.
We personally are no longer eating at McDonald’s, which I am sure does not make an impact, but if we pass this around maybe there will be an impact felt.
All Americans that sell cows at a livestock auction barn had to sign a paper stating that we do NOT EVER feed our cows any part of another cow. South Americans are not required to do this as of yet.
McDonald’s has announced that they are going to start importing much of their beef from South America . The problem is that South Americans aren’t under the same regulations as American beef producers, and the regulations they have are loosely controlled.
They can spray numerous pesticides on their pastures that have been banned here at home because of residues found in the beef. They can also use various hormones and growth regulators that we can’t. The American public needs to be aware of this problem and that they may be putting themselves at risk from now on by eating at good old McDonald’s.
American ranchers raise the highest quality beef in the world and this is what Americans deserve to eat. Not beef from countries where quality is loosely controlled. Therefore, I am proposing a boycott of McDonald’s until they see the light.
I’m sorry but everything is not always about the bottom line, and when it comes to jeopardizing my family’s health, that is where I draw the line.
I am sending this note to about thirty people. If each of you send it to at least ten more (30 x 10 = 300) …. and those 300 send it to at l east ten more (300 x 10 = 3,000) … and so on, by the time the message reaches the sixth generation of people, we will have reached over THREE MILLION consumers!
I’ll bet you didn’t think you and I had that much potential, did you? Acting together we can make a difference. If this makes sense to you, please pass this message on.
David W. Forrest, Ph.D., PAS, Dipl.
ACAP Department of Animal Science
Texas A&M University
Phone (979) 845-3560