Not Proud

[poliphilo]

I've started eating meat. It's France that's to blame. You scour the menu for the vegetarian option and all they've got is crudites- you know, raw carrot and zucchini and stuff- so I made a decision before we went-  for the next five days I'm a carnivore.

What I hadn't been prepared for was how my energy levels went up. 

But I'm going to insist we buy meat that's been raised ethically. That's my quarrel with meat-eating- not that I'm sentimental about animals, because I'm not- but that industrial farming is disgusting. 

Last night we had lamb steaks- in a mushroom sauce- with mashed potato. 

I'd forgotten food could be such fun.

Comments

[white_hart]

I was a vegetarian for several years in my late teens and early twenties, but gave it up ten and a half years ago, mostly because I was craving meat so badly I thought my body must need it somehow.

However, I'll only buy ethically reared meat. The meat we eat at home comes either from the local organic butcher or from farmers' markets, where I can buy it direct from the people who raised the animals. If I'm eating out I will generally have the vegetarian option, unless it's a really good restaurant where I know the meat will have been ethically sourced (ethical meat really does taste better).

Occasionally I think about becoming vegetarian again, but although I still wouldn't be supporting factory farms I'd also not be supporting the ethical meat producers, and I think that by doing that I'm actually making more of a statement.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I don't crave meat, but have to admit it makes meal times more interesting.

We don't have any practical option but to buy from the local supermarkets. I'm just hoping I can trust them when they put "outdoor reared" and "organic" on their produce.

[saare-snowqueen.livejournal.com]

Welcome back. Here on Saaremaa I work with the local Saare Mahe - That's the organic food producers union. Their vegetables are so good that they make a body consider becoming vegetarian but the meat our farmers produce is SSSOOOOOooooooo good as well. We believe that a balanced diet with lot's of fresh veg and fruit and reasonable amounts of meat will make you healthier. More energy means more active and that's good for your heart as well. The BBC Food magazine regularly lists local fairs and green markets. You should be able to get a line on ethical producers in your area from them.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

You're right, we should do the research and see if there are any farmers' markets in the area.

[kutsuwamushi.livejournal.com]

I'm just hoping I can trust them when they put "outdoor reared" and "organic"

I know nothing about British regulations, but in the United States this sadly doesn't tell you much about how the animals are treated. Most of the popular "organic" brands are industrial operations, and in some cases the labeling is actively misleading about the quality of the animals' care.

It's very frustrating for people who are interested in ethically raised meat. Provided they actually realize that "organic" doesn't mean "ethical" in the first place.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'm afraid things may be the same in Britain. Our local supermarket says it operates high ethical standards in choosing it's meat suppliers, but we've only got their word for it...