not technically helpful...

[cellio]

I was trying to find out if Butterball turkeys actually contain butter, so I went to their web site. I could find nothing about ingredients/additives on the site, but I found this in the "about us" section: "In fact, the Butterball name was chosen to characterize a new, special breed of broad-breasted white feather turkeys, not because the turkeys contain butter, as many mistakenly believe."

Just a few more words could have removed the ambiguity. So it's a mistake to believe that the turkeys contain butter, or (what this technically says) that it's a mistake to believe that their name has anything to do with the possible presence of butter? Having failed to disambiguate with the resources they provide, I sent them email.

Odd detail: while they have a domain name (the obvious one, in fact), customer support has an AOL address.

Update: Reply received; no butter. (See comments.)

Comments

[laurabee.livejournal.com]

I seem to recall that Butterball turkeys are injected with "a solution", which I assumed to be turkey broth and flavor. It's possible that there's butter in the solution. And, I don't know if it matters (not being very conversant in all things kosher or if that's what you're after), but they have a whole page about serving Butterball turkeys during Passover.

[cellio]

dsrtao (below) says no butter. I'll post when I hear back from Butterball.

[dsrtao]

The solution is vegetable oil, salt, water, and sometimes MSG. (If it contains MSG, it will be mentioned on the packaging.)

ConAgra owns all sorts of things, including Hebrew National and Slim Jim.

[cellio]

Thanks. I don't have the turkey and thus its label (I wouldn't buy a non-kosher bird), and wanted to figure out before Thursday if I'm going to have a problem at my parents' house.

[profane-stencil.livejournal.com]

It occurs to me now that I had always assumed that the name "Butterball" was a reference to the noun "butterball" -as dictionary.com has it, a rotund individual. Perhaps I am mistaken.

I believe their website is *trying* to tell us that there's no butter in the bird, but who can tell for sure? I hope you get an answer to your email.

[cellio]

It occurs to me now that I had always assumed that the name "Butterball" was a reference to the noun "butterball"

That seems to track with what they're implying. We'll see when they respond to my email. Meanwhile, another commenter says no butter; they use vegetable oil for the fat.

(Oh, and hi and welcome. Are you here via the random-journal link? Just curious since we have no friends or interests in common, and the topology of LJ can sometimes involve strange twists.)

[profane-stencil.livejournal.com]

I found you on kayre's friends page, which I found through...well, I've lost track. That we have no friends or (explicit) interests in common is a plus, as far as I'm concerned. I can't imagine a worse friends list than one in which everyone thinks, looks, and lives the same way. (Actually, I can imagine something worse- a friends list in which everyone has everything in common, and no one can write an interesting sentence.)

Thanks for the welcome. I'll add you to my list. You are invited to add me back.

[cellio]

That we have no friends or (explicit) interests in common is a plus, as far as I'm concerned.

I agree. I always enjoy finding interesting people I wouldn't have found via referrals, or being found by them. Learn new things; see viewpoints you're not already intimately familiar with; expand your horizons. With the overwhelming numbers of angst-ridden 13-year-olds on LJ, though, random search is unlikely to produce the desired result. :-)

[profane-stencil.livejournal.com]

Friend of a friend of a friend of a friend (etc.) tends to work well for me- most people have at least one interesting friend (provided you avoid the teens and goths and exhibitionists, who tend to be easy to find, anyway...).

[anniemal.livejournal.com]

I have decidedly weird photographs of my hand with butter under a turkey skin. I buy cheap turkeys and imbue them. May or may not do it this year. It worked well. Maybe plain. For mom and our mutual weight gain. Jellied cranberry sauce or Mama Stamberg's Relish. Just glad I'm not going to have to deal with strangers. That was a scare.

[sue-n-julia.livejournal.com]

Try using sage and garlic instead of butter under the skin for a taste treat. Or, stuff under the skin with stuffing instead of in the body. The stuffing is a little drier and stiffer, but *very* tasty.

S

[cellio]

Mmm, garlic. There is rarely enough garlic. :-)

[patsmor.livejournal.com]

May I say that reading this note reminded me of the West Wing episode where the President calls the company for information on stuffing the bird? ;-)

[cellio]

That was a fun episode!

response from Butterball

[cellio]

Here is the mail I received from Butterball:

Thank you for contacting the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line via the Internet!

Since the ingredient you are asking about is one of the "Big 8" allergens (wheat, eggs, soy, milk, fish, shellfish, peanuts and tree nuts), the USDA requires that this ingredient must be listed in the ingredient statement on the package when it is in the food. No "Big 8" allergens are used in the flavoring ingredients of Butterball turkeys.

When there are dietary concerns, we advise purchasing Butterball Fresh Turkey and Butterball Fresh Breast of Turkey, which are all-natural and contain no added ingredients.

The breast meat of Butterball Frozen Turkeys, including Butterball Frozen Stuffed Turkey, and Butterball Frozen Breast of Turkey is moistness enhanced with a patented recipe of ingredients to enhance the natural flavor of the breast meat and yield a more uniformly juicy and tender turkey after cooking.

Individual ingredients in the basting recipe (water, salt, modified food starch - corn or potato source, sodium phosphate and natural flavors) are specified on the labels. We cannot say what the natural flavors are since that is proprietary information. However, we can tell you that no "Big 8" allergens are included and that the recipe does not contain butter.

If you have additional questions don't hesitate to contact us again, or call the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line at 1-800-BUTTERBALL (1-800-288-8372) and speak directly to one of our professional home economists. If you like, request the complimentary "Holiday Entertaining" recipe booklet that's available to Talk-Line callers.

Enjoy the best of all from Butterball and have a great holiday!

Re: response from Butterball

[profane-stencil.livejournal.com]

You got a response! Even more amazing, you got a response that actually answered the question! Thanks for sharing it.

Of course butter would have to mentioned as an allergen. I should have thought of that. A common occurrence in internet communication- getting caught up in the superficial question (Why is it called "butterball"?) and losing sight of the important element ("Is Cellio going to have a problem with her parents' turkey"?). A great example here (http://www.livejournal.com/users/experimentego/180374.html), if anyone has the time to read it.