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After Video From Crab Stick Factory Goes Viral, People Refuse To Eat Them Ever Again
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After Video From Crab Stick Factory Goes Viral, People Refuse To Eat Them Ever Again

After Video From Crab Stick Factory Goes Viral, People Refuse To Eat Them Ever AgainA Video Of How Crab Sticks Are Made Goes Viral And Upsets Many Internet UsersPeople Swear To Never Eat Crab Sticks Again After Finding Out How They Are Actually MadeAfter Video From Crab Stick Factory Goes Viral, People Swear To Never Eat Them Again People Are Swearing Off Crab Sticks After Finding Out How They’re Really MadeInternet Users Learn How Crab Sticks Are Actually Made, Swear To Never Eat Them AgainPeople Swear To Never Eat Crab Sticks Again After Video Of How Crab Sticks Are Made Goes ViralViral Video Of Crab Stick Factory Makes Internet Users Reconsider Ever Buying Them AgainAfter Video Of How Crab Sticks Are Made Goes Viral, People Swear To Never Eat Crab Sticks AgainVideo Showing How Crab Sticks Are Actually Made Is Making People Reconsider Eating Them
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Earlier this year, a video from the Food Kingdom Youtube Channel went viral. It depicted, reportedly, the largest crab stick factory in the world, where over forty thousand tones of the product are made every year.

Despite the name, most crab sticks have very little crab in them and are instead, like a hotdog sausage or Mcdonald’s chicken nugget, formed from a particularly unappealing paste. The video made its way to Reddit, where netizens were, understandably, surprised to see just how the product was made. Many swore off eating it ever again, while others attempted to keep track of all the ingredients that went into it.
More info: Youtube

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    While it seems obvious, many people are still surprised to see the conditions processed foods are made in

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    A video of how crab sticks are made upset many internet users

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Despite the name, most crab sticks contain zero crab meat

    While this might not come as a shock to everyone, the vast majority of crab sticks are generally not made from actual crabs. Instead, immigration crab meat is formed mostly from starch and pulverized white fish leftovers. The red coloring is just that, red food dye. As the video depicts, fish products are mulched and pulverized until it looks like a deeply unappetizing construction material, then a variety of other ingredients are mixed before the “crab sticks” are laid out and formed into the item we might put in sushi rolls or salads. While it’s true that many items we eat are incredibly processed and contain a variety of ingredients we perhaps would not use in home cooking, crab sticks are probably one of the best illustrations of why it’s best to not know “how the sausage is made.”

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    Even if this video didn’t upset your stomach, there are still completely legitimate reasons to still avoid imitation crab meat, crab sticks, and surimi, as it’s sometimes called. The United States Department of Agriculture National Nutrient Database has found that in most cases, crab sticks are 76% water, 15% protein, 6.85% carbohydrates, and only 0.9% fats. Nutritionally, they are pretty much inferior to any “real” fish products out there.

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

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    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

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    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Image credits: Food Kingdom

    Crab sticks, or surimi, are a modern solution to replace expensive seafood

    Imitation crab meat, understandably, is a relatively recent invention, first patented and manufactured in 1974, in Hiroshima City. Later, the process was exported to the United States, where it was mass-produced and exported around the world. These days, in many nations, they can not be legally called crab sticks, since, you guessed it, there is no actual crab meat in the product.

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    The factory depicted in the video is located in Thailand, where crab sticks, surimi, and a variety of fish products are formed and shipped to over thirty countries worldwide. The Lucky Union Food Company, which owns the factory, also has operations in Poland, where it, reportedly, exports over twelve thousand tons of fish products a year in the European Union. While in Asia, surimi is often eaten as is, in the West, it’s generally used to “replace” a more expensive product like, obviously, crab, shrimp, and lobster. It also has a niche use in kosher cuisine, where shellfish is banned, so practicing jews might replace it with surimi products made from whitefish. Nevertheless, it seems that most people would have preferred to remain ignorant of how these products are actually made.

    Commenters shared a variety of opinions, from outright shock to indifference

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    Justin Sandberg

    Justin Sandberg

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

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    I am a writer at Bored Panda. Despite being born in the US, I ended up spending most of my life in Europe, from Latvia, Austria, and Georgia to finally settling in Lithuania. At Bored Panda, you’ll find me covering topics ranging from the cat meme of the day to red flags in the workplace and really anything else. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, beating other people at board games, cooking, good books, and bad films.

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    Justin Sandberg

    Justin Sandberg

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

    I am a writer at Bored Panda. Despite being born in the US, I ended up spending most of my life in Europe, from Latvia, Austria, and Georgia to finally settling in Lithuania. At Bored Panda, you’ll find me covering topics ranging from the cat meme of the day to red flags in the workplace and really anything else. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, beating other people at board games, cooking, good books, and bad films.

    Ilona Baliūnaitė

    Ilona Baliūnaitė

    Author, BoredPanda staff

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    I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda since 2017. I've searched through a multitude of images to create over 2000 diverse posts on a wide range of topics. I love memes, funny, and cute stuff, but I'm also into social issues topics. Despite my background in communication, my heart belongs to visual media, especially photography. When I'm not at my desk, you're likely to find me in the streets with my camera, checking out cool exhibitions, watching a movie at the cinema or just chilling with a coffee in a cozy place

    Read less »

    Ilona Baliūnaitė

    Ilona Baliūnaitė

    Author, BoredPanda staff

    I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda since 2017. I've searched through a multitude of images to create over 2000 diverse posts on a wide range of topics. I love memes, funny, and cute stuff, but I'm also into social issues topics. Despite my background in communication, my heart belongs to visual media, especially photography. When I'm not at my desk, you're likely to find me in the streets with my camera, checking out cool exhibitions, watching a movie at the cinema or just chilling with a coffee in a cozy place

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    Shark Lady
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They are called fish sticks or seafood sticks in the UK. They can't be called crab sticks if they don't contain any crab.

    Bernd Herbert
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Same here in Germany. They're just called Surimi, like the original Japanese name. And I honestly don't see the issue. It's mostly shredded fish. What did people think how the processing would look like?

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    Shark Lady
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They are called fish sticks or seafood sticks in the UK. They can't be called crab sticks if they don't contain any crab.

    Bernd Herbert
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Same here in Germany. They're just called Surimi, like the original Japanese name. And I honestly don't see the issue. It's mostly shredded fish. What did people think how the processing would look like?

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