Cincinnati-based Kroger Co. reversed course Thursday and joined the growing list of grocery store chains that pledged not to sell ground beef with the additive known as “pink slime.”

Known in the meat industry as “lean finely textured beef,” the product has always been inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It’s included to avoid wasting any by-products and is exposed to a “puff” of “ammonium hydroxide gas” that is meant to destroy bacteria, according to a question-and-answer document released by the American Meat Institute.

But the material has been the focus of growing consumer concern.

The Kroger Co., the nation’s largest traditional grocer with 2,435 supermarkets in 31 states, also said it will stop buying the beef, reversing itself after saying Wednesday that it would sell beef both with and without the additive.

In an emailed statement, Kroger Co. said it would no longer use ground beef containing the additive.

“Our customers have expressed their concerns that the use of lean finely textured beef— while fully approved by the USDA for safety and quality—is something they do not want in their ground beef,” Kroger said. “We highly value customer feedback, and the recent flood of news stories has diminished their confidence in the product.”

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the retail giant that sells significantly more food than any other chain, said Wednesday that its Walmart and Sam’s Club stores will begin selling meat that doesn’t contain the additive. It did not specify whether it would stop selling beef with the filler altogether. Wal-Mart did not immediately respond to inquiries Thursday.

On Wednesday, Supervalu Inc. — which operates the Cub Foods chain, said that customer concern prompted it to stop carrying products containing the filler.

Dave Peterson, a spokesman for Meijer stores, said the best course for curious shoppers is to speak with a store meat department employee.

“Most of our products do not have it (pink slime) in them,” Peterson said. “But what we encourage our customers to do is go in there and talk to one of our meat department associates.”

After Peterson called the Hamilton JournalNews/Middletown Journal, another Meijer spokesman, Frank Guglielmi, called and said that Meijer suppliers have been instructed not to ship any future meat with the filler.

Industry insiders aren’t certain how the term “pink slime” originated. And some observers acknowledge it’s an unsettling name for what has long been a simple blend of connective tissue and scraps, a mix usually not even identified in any ingredients list.

“I don’t know where that came from,” said Meijer’s Peterson. “It’s strange. That’s not something we’ve heard in the industry at all.”

Grocers and butchers are more apt to use the expression “LFTB” or lean finely-textured beef, Peterson said. The American Meat Institute also calls it BLBT, or “boneless lean beef trimmings.”

Supermarket chain Stop & Shop is also saying it will no longer sell beef with the filler.