It seems as if the ugly hand of shrinkflation has found its way to the meat markets of Walmart. The super retailer’s grocery stores have long been counted upon by shoppers as one of the best available dealers around when it comes to filling up their carts. But one TikToker is claiming that customers aren’t getting their best value for their dollars.
Lauren Lillico (@exotictakeomasaki) describes herself as “a mom of 7, 1 husband, and here for sister wives” in her TikTok bio. She’s come out swinging at Walmart in her latest video, which she dropped on Sunday.
@exotictakeomasaki walmart is ripping everyone off and its just ridiculous.. this is the top grade of meat they have and this is what is turned into.. water.. #gettiredofbeingrippedoff ♬ original sound – Lauren Lillico
In the video, which has picked up 37,000 thousand views, Lillico shows what appears to be a pound of beef in a saucepan. But there’s a problem. More than half of the “pound” seems to have been rendered into liquid.
“Walmart is ripping everyone off and its just ridiculous.. this is the top grade of meat they have and this is what is turned into.. water..” Lillico alleges in the video caption.
Lillico claims in the video that the meat was “Walmart brand—the best they have.” She told the Daily Dot that she thinks “it is absolutely insane that walmart is allowed to do this their consumers.”
The watery liquid in the video seems to take up nearly 50% of the medium-sized saucepan. However, many of Lillico’s viewers who have purchased Walmart ground beef are questioning Lillico’s experience.
Walmart customer Dwayne Watkins (@dwaynewatkins1) commented, “I buy and make Walmart ground beef probably every week, I’ve never once experienced that.”
“I buy 96 percent lean beef. From Walmart and never once has it looked like that ..?” another questioned.
Lillico confirmed in the comments section that the meat wasn’t frozen at the start nor did she add water.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) website, “The percentage of naturally occurring water in meat varies with the type of muscle, the kind of meat, the season of the year, and the pH of the meat” and that the muscle in meat “is approximately 75% water (although different cuts may have more or less water).”
Cooksinfo.com states that a large amount of water in beef is absolutely common. “Ground beef naturally has a lot of water in it,” it states. “That’s not the producer adding water, we’re all made of water. Ground beef is 55% water. When ground beef is cooked, half the weight that was water evaporates away in steam.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Walmart via email for comment.
