Red meat doesn't necessarily mean fresh meat. Some supermarkets are selling ground beef & steaks packed with carbon monoxide and other gases. The process, which replaces most of the oxygen during packaging, keeps meat looking red longer. And the meat may not really be as fresh as it appears.
I've noticed this when shopping for large packages of ground beef at discount grocers. Interesting article on this topic in the July 2006 isssue of Consumer Reports. Also available on their web site @
www.consumerreports.org.