Here's What Happens to the Meat on 'Forged in Fire' After It Gets Sliced
Published March 24 2021, 9:32 p.m. ET
The History Channel’s Forged in Fire chronicles expert blade makers as they burn custom blades into existence. There’s an element of entertainment, an element of tutorial, but most of all, an element of fire! And what other way to test these blades than by chopping through carcasses of meat?
However, many viewers of the show are concerned with using meat solely for blade testing purposes. Forged in Fire appeals to a wide demographic. However, one thing a lot of its fans agree on is that the meat shouldn’t be going to waste. So what does Forged in Fire do with the meat?
The meat used on ‘Forged in Fire’ is not going to waste.
While many worried the meat was going unused, Bill Goldberg, the host of the Forged in Fire spinoff series, Knife or Death, confirmed that the meat does not go to waste.
He shared to GameSpot, "Well, it just depends on what's on the menu that day because it's quite possible that it can end up on a grill right next to set, depending upon whether it be the pork loin. Most of the time, the fish does not go to waste, whether it be cleaned up and sushied or put on the grill. We try not to waste anything on that show."
The ‘Forged in Fire’ meat is typically donated.
Knife or Death is slightly different from Forged in Fire in that the contestants are testing pre-made blades in slicing challenges, whereas in Forged in Fire, the focus is more on the blade making than slicing obstacles. This means that in the main Forged in Fire series, meat is often sitting in a hot warehouse all day.
Because of this, it’s not the most edible meat for humans. Robert from the 100th Forged in Fire episode seemingly commented on a Reddit post, confirming, “The meat gets donated to places, typically not for human consumption. Instead, wildlife reservations and things like that get the meat in order to keep it from going to waste.”
Another Reddit user on the same post claimed that Doug Marcaida, one of the Forged in Fire judges, replied to a comment on Instagram saying that, “It's donated to farms, food banks, and other charities.”
Does ‘Forged in Fire’ still really need to use meat to test the blades?
Even though the meat is being donated to places that need it, many of us are asking if it’s actually necessary for the show. It can feel grotesque to watch raw pig carcasses being sliced through purely for blade-making entertainment.
On the other hand, Forged in Fire is a show that pays tribute to a medieval art. Blade making was initially used to forge swords and weapons. Now blade making is an art, but the blades should still be functional for their initial purpose, which was to slice through bodies of flesh and bone. The next closest thing to a human is an animal.
While chopping through meat may seem like the best way to test the Forged in Fire blades, with today’s technology, a replica of the textures and densities of an animal could probably be created instead of slicing the animals solely for entertainment value.
Watch new episodes of Forged in Fire every Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET on History.