I was pretty much a vegetarian until I met my boyfriend. Being a true carnivore, he converted me over and I now eat beef somewhat regularly-- maybe once a week. I don't think it's good to eat too much meat, and there are some meats I will not touch (like pork), but a little bit of beef every once in a while can't hurt.
I also recently read an interesting tidbit in Mother Jones magazine by Kiera Butler about the fake-meat industry. That soy-burger you're chomping on may not be as eco-friendly as you think it is. Did you know that it actually takes more energy to process vegetarian meat alternatives (such as tofu, veggie burgers, fake sausage, faux hotdogs, etc) than it does to get some grass-fed steaks on the supermarket shelves? It's all the processing that they do to remove the fat from the soybean oil used in these veggie products. It's still better to eat non-processed whole vegetables, for your body and the environment, but it's something to think about the nest time you stroll down that veggie burger freezer aisle.
5 comments:
I never buy meat because I HATE to cook it, but I do eat it when I go out. I'm with you on the pork train - a) I don't like it and b) I do like pigs.
I also like bacon, but I don't immediately associate that with pork... aka, my brain is making excuses.
I think there is a lot of propaganda from both sides that is very misleading. You have to take into account that most beef ISN'T grass fed free ranged meat. In fact, more than 70% of it isn't. So while the free ranged may not have as big of an environmental impact as a veggie burger what about the other 70%? It is very easy to find figures on how horrible the production of "meat" is for the environment. Even just the feces from one production "farm" can be so toxic that it makes humans physically sick and gives them all kinds of ailments, some which can lead to death. I think a really great book on the subject is Eating Animals by Jonathan Safron Foer. It's his journey to find out just exactly what he is consuming as he has a newborn son and is skeptical about what he is feeding his family. As an aside, he is Jewish and therefore views meat perhaps a little differently than your average person. I think the most we can do is to be very aware of what we are consuming, how it affects the world around us, and what it does to our bodies. Some people really like meat, there's nothing wrong with that, it's just important to be aware.
haha sorry for that book. I just think that there is a lot of misleading information being spread by the meat industry AND by the veggies.
There is a lot of misleading information out there, but as the consumers, we need to educate ourselves about what we're putting into our bodies. I eat everything, and as long as I know where the food is coming from [grass-fed/free-range/sustainable or not], then I'm okay with it. In terms of the fake processed meat, that's the thing. It's processed. I can taste it, and I don't usually like it, so I'd rather just not eat it.
Unfortunately, there are many families out there who cannot afford to eat healthy, even if they are aware that it's not healthy. A few apples can cost as much as the unhealthier ingredients for a meal for an entire family... :/
Yuuuup I'm a full time carnivore. I can't do processed fake meat like that... Ewwwwww. And yeah I don't eat pork at ALL.
Post a Comment