In terms of the meatification of diets and its impact, which arguments, if any, are most convincing when it comes to addressing a meat-heavy diet?
What are your thoughts, suggestions, or knowledge on eating less, if any, meat?
If you're not convinced by these arguments (i.e. environmental degradation, working conditions, etc.) or arguments from the Meatification of Diets reading, why not? (Is it freedom of choice, cultural connection to meat, or personal preferences for example?)
Discuss!!
P.S. This question totally reminds me of the Hungry Planet exhibit and assignment in which we all saw the diverse diets and the variation from Global North to Global South as well as within each geography. I think a few sentences from my Hungry Planet essay responds a little bit to these questions:
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| The Revis Family, North Carolina |
The most surprising thing I discovered from this activity would be the various ways we can analyze what constitutes a “healthy” or “nutritious” diet. I think if you ask most Americans, and perhaps most Global Northerners, meat would be the most important part of their diet because it provides necessary proteins. While that’s mostly true, we see the diets of the Patkars and the Aymes whose families both consume no meat at all and yet with grains and fresh produce they can lead equally healthy, if not more so, lives. We can also see varying nutrition within two Global North diets. The consumption of lean, local, and fresh meats and fish although high in portion can still be healthier than an average amount of meat consumed if said meat is preserved and highly processed.Photo credit of course to Peter Menzel from his book What the World Eats
The most convincing argument for me is individual health. There are so many well-conducted studies that show the healthiest diet is a plant-based diet. We have been brainwashed into thinking we need meat protein, but plants are a superior source of protein. There are lots of good meatless options in our little corner of the world. Even though it seems like there is ground beef everywhere you turn, with just a little effort, there are some great veggie options. The Meatification readings just confirmed my decision and commitment to not eating meat.
ReplyDeleteI think the evidence from multiple perspectives (environmental, health, food safety, working conditions, animal welfare) all point to the reasonable conclusion that we should eat less meat, if not eliminate it from our diets. If we don't completely eliminate it, the meat we do eat should come from trusted (non-factory farm, non-corn fed) sources. For me all of the arguments are compelling, but probably the most convincing is the health/safety argument. That is, (a) eating a lot of meat is not good for you anyway, (b) much of the meat which is available is high in fat and cholesterol due to what it is being fed -cheap surplus corn, (c) much of the meat available is risky to eat, if not downright unsafe - due to the conditions under which animals are raised and kept "healthy" through the use of antibiotics, hormones, cannibalistic feed mixes (Mad Cow Disease anyone?). Fish is a whole other story, but in short it is risky because of the bioaccumulation of heavy metals. I find the health argument (and its many dimensions) most convincing because as an individual you are confronted with all these health risks that can directly affect your bodily health. This is disturbing, and makes it feel more "real." The least convincing argument to me is the animal welfare argument--I find that one difficult to connect with compared to human health costs, the slaughterhouse workers' safety risks, and the rampant environmental degradation (air, water pollution from CAFOs) which will ultimately hurt all of us. It is hard to connect with the animal welfare argument unless you see the animals, look them in the eye, which most of us don't do here in a rather urban setting...
ReplyDeleteI find all of the arguments compelling. I've been vegetarian for many years, but before I was so I refrained from red meat because I had learned that it wasn't good for you. So I was first moved by health reasons, but when I learned more about the way meat is produced in this country I realized that more issues were at hand.
ReplyDeleteI had always been a longtime lover of animals, even wanting to be a vet when I was a kid, and was appalled when I found out about the living (dying) conditions of animals in the meat industry. The way meat is marketed keeps the consumer from recognizing that what they are eating was once a living creature. I think it's wrong to needlessly put another creature in pain for my own pleasure. I understand that humans are omnivores and I condone eating meat in certain instances, but the way we treat meat in our culture today is simply out of pleasure rather than necessity.
A less personal issue at hand that further swayed me is that of the environmental impacts of meat eating. I find it ridiculous that as people go crazy for everything 'green' and good for the environment, they ignore the way they eat. As we've learned from our readings and in class, the impacts of the meat industry on the environment are huge! I don't think the taste of a hamburger is worth the permanent damage we are doing to the planet.
I would like to also defend working condition of those in meat industry as a reasoning too, but after reading Tomatoland I'm concerned about hypocrisy and would rather like to consider working conditions of people in the food industry as a whole. This is the aspect I know the least about, but it's something I certainly care for and want to learn more about so I can make
Overall, the benefits I would get from eating meat do not balance with all of the negative impacts of the meat industry. I would however like to point out that I don't condemn anyone who does eat meat. Rather, I think that people just generally aren't informed enough or are willfully ignorant of the way their food is produced. I'd like to think that if people were more knowledgeable, they would also opt out of eating so much meat.
P.S. Recommended readings that helped me make my decision to not eat meat: Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser, Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer
There are also a lot of great movies on netflix about the food industry. I recommend Food Inc., Fresh, Forks Over Knives, Food Matters, What's on Your Plate?, and Ingredients. Check them out if you can!
Thank you for your comments! Keep them coming!
ReplyDeleteEating Animals has been on my reading list! I really have to get to reading it! As for those documentaries, I've seen all but Fresh and they're all great--I also recommend them. There are also a few docs on colony collapse disorder on Netflix streaming free such as Queen of the Sun, Vanishing of the Bees, and another I can't recall the title. Check them our if possible! I'll be doing a post on the bee-keeping movement and CCD soon!
I too find all of the arguments compelling. Since being involved with this class I find I'm eating alot less meat. I hardly ever buy it to cook at home and that's where I eat most of my meals. I do still eat it when I go out with friends though. I enujoyed Singer and Mason's book The Way We Eat: why our food choices matter. They discuss the ethics of eating and profile three different households.
ReplyDeleteWe'll be watching Fresh in class and a brand new film, Planeat that I hope you'll enjoy.
I have been a vegetarian for nearly a year now. (Well, pescatarian if we're getting technical but I don't eat most seafood.) I started the shift after reading Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. It opened my eyes to the ways in which food is produced in this country now, and the environmental effects it has. The main reason I switched to a meatless diet started because I simply love animals, and I did not want to think about what that cow might have had to endure to become the steak on my plate. However, I do not think that this argument for a meatless diet is very convincing to many people. Animal activists have such a bad reputation already, and most people like their meat too much to care where it comes from. Rather, I think the reason why I am mainly a vegetarian now is a more convincing one. Recently, I have been hearing more and more about what meat is composed of in the United States, and how it is not a healthy choice, really. Multiple factors from genetics to diet all add up to a meat that may be tasty and preferential to the modern American's palette, but altogether unhealthy. To be clear, I am in no way what one would call a "health nut." I enjoy milk chocolate, cookies, and other junk food just the same as I did before going veg. I just don't find it debatable whatsoever how unhealthy modern meat is. As someone who cares about the environment, I also find the evidence behind the detrimental effects on the environment from factory farming convincing. To choose one, I would have to go with the fact that meat nowadays is not healthy.
ReplyDeleteQuickly, I will say that being a vegetarian is difficult, even in a place as understanding as Seattle, when one is surrounded by habitual carnivores. I still receive a lot of flack from my parents about how I am getting my protein and iron (which, by the way, there are plenty of highly suitable alternatives), and a lot of teasing from some friends who think of my decision as "hippie," or unnecessary. Even after a year, I have found it hard to make others see truly why I chose this, and make them understand that I am happier this way. I find it inspiring and helpful when people are receptive to my reasons for being a vegetarian. It makes me think that one day hopefully Americans will consume less meat, and it will be produced in a sustainable, and much healthier way.