Hot water treatment has already been determined to be an effective intervention for beef carcasses (Barkata, Acuff, Lucia, & Hale, 1993; Dorsa, 1997; Dorsa, Cutter, Siragusa, & Koohmaraie, 1996). Due to the possibility of product microbial contamination through processing before the production of ground beef, an additional decontamination step before grinding would act as an additional measure to reduce microbial numbers on beef trimmings. The only way to address these microorganisms is to develop a treatment that will adequately target areas (deep crevices, space between muscle fibers, etc.) within trimmings that are difficult for other interventions to be effective in lowering microbial counts.