"Meet your meat"

This is Peta's schtick: a media campaign to show people the very worse in factory livestock production. It is ugly stuff and one should definitely be turned off by it, however we need to keep in mind why factory farms "work." They work because you and I expect to pay less than $2.00 a pound for ground beef, and no more than $0.99 a pound for fryers. Factory farms are THE answer to giving us cheap meat. It's a fast food world and if you don't like it, odds are you've no one to blame but yourself.

Peta would like us to point condemning fingers at Factory Farmers and their affiliated corporations, but (just like McDonald's, please take note "Super Size Me" fans) WE ARE THEIR BOSSES! Nothing irks me more than people forgetting their freewill.

Now, Peta's solution is to avoid eating meat altogether. Meat eating in their book is cruelty no matter how the animal was treated up until the time of butchering or how it was slaughtered. Factory farms are simply a great propaganda tool for them.

My solution is that you take their advice and "Meet your meat." You don't like the horrors of factory farming? Find yourself a local farmer/rancher and commit to buying your meat products from them. YOU WILL PAY MORE FOR IT because the farmer/rancher is investing more time and effort into the product and is not running live chickens through an assembly line decapitator that frequently makes horrific mistakes. You truly do get what you pay for.

Local, pasture raised, free-range animals that you can go and meet truly do answer all the criticisms Peta puts forth. But for most people it is easier to ignore Peta's propaganda and go on buying cheap meat in ignorance. But if Peta's videos haunt you and you have no intentions to "Go Vegan"...I say "Go Local" and "Meet your Meat."

I definitely think it is important for our kids to know that our food actually does not come from the mega-market.

Comments

Susan Sophia said…
I know we've talked about this before, that our goal is to raise as much of our own meat as possible or support Farmer John in Sequim, but I just have to say....
We will NEVER buy another chicken from the store again!!!
I've read about places like this in the Joel Salatin books but to put the pictures with the words is something else. That's pretty much the way he describes it in his book. I couldn't believe it. I was a tiny bit skeptical because he's a free-range poultry farmer and of course is wanting to sell his product but boy, I believe him now. I'm so glad we can put our own chicken in the freezer.
I can't wait to do other meat of our as well. Until then Farmer John in Sequim will not lose my business.

The girls would also like to sign their name to this as well.

Kelsey,
Charissa
and Mama
10:04 AM
Liz in Seattle said…
Another thing to mention is that when you visit the farm you can see what the animals eat. And a lot of the small farms out there, while not being "organic" (certification involves lots of $$$), they are close enough to it for me.
11:51 AM
fdj said…
To the women of the house: okie dokie.

Liz: excellent point. John isn't certified organic or anything, but I've seen his farm, I know what he feeds his stock, and I've tasted the results. AND the price was very reasonable.

:)
1:06 PM
Anonymous said…
James, I agree - IF you can get on his list. He's a breeder though, not a rancher. I was pretty put off by his schedule and his assertion that most of the animals they slaughter are breed stock that have reached the end of their useful life. I DON'T want to pay top dollar for a 4 year old breeding animal. Maybe some day I'll have a pasture of my own & I'll go visit the county auction


SF
11:49 AM
fdj said…
Steve....you don't pay top dollar for those cows...for the hamburger stock he gives you a deep discount. I believe he said 1.30 a pound.

Those that aren't going to do well in shows (which does not necessarily speak to their meat quality) and hence breeding go the way of traditional beef cattle.
2:34 PM
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