The following entry describes some of the unfortunate violence against animals in the meat industry. There is also a discussion about the terms "organic", and "free range" and what they really mean to the industry. I am not saying that I will be a vegan or vegetarian, that matter is to be decided, but there is information that you may not know contained in this entry. This is for informational purposes only. I would like to make it clear that it is YOUR CHOICE weather you want to read this and any decisions that you make based on this entry are your own.
While on this journey I have been taking the time to educate myself on where my food comes from and what really goes in to the foods that I normally ate before I started this. I have been looking into the differences between plain old meat, fruit, and vegetables from a store and what it means to be organic in meats, fruits, and vegetables also. I have been researching vegetarianism and veganism as well...
I have found out that I do not approve of the way that animals are treated in the process of becoming food for human consumption in feedlots and industrialized farming, that much I know. I have also found out that I have been duped into thinking that when animal products are stamped with the words "Organic" or "Free Range" that it has been treated more humanely from birth to death. This is just simply not true in most cases.
The term "organic" simply means that animals do not get fed food that was grown with pesticides or synthetic fertilizers, but it in no way changes the treatment of the animals themselves as far as the horrifying fates that they have to face. "Free Range" is also a very misleading term in the meat industry. When you hear that term you probably think of sprawling hills and chickens or cows roaming free, but that is not the case! All that this term means is that the animals have to have access to the outdoors, but not necessarily total freedom with as much grass to eat as they want. What it does mean is that the animals have to have access to the outdoors, but it does not specify to what outdoor area. Your "free range" chicken could actually be an "I was let outside to stand in the 4x4 gravel or dirt patch for a few minutes with 60 others." chicken. That is just the chicken, mind you. There is not a definition of what "free range" means in cattle or pork yet!
You also have to remember that these "Organic" and "Free Range" titles do not protect the animals from the VIOLENCE that they face in both setting AND in industrialized farming as well. Eggs are taken from the mother hens and hatched in an incubator. These chicks are then taken and "sorted" and this is where the violence begins... Male chicks are most likely discarded or mutilated. I do not mean that figuratively. The male chicks are either collected in trash bags and stuck in the dumpster STILL ALIVE to either be suffocated or starved to death or they are thrown STILL ALIVE into a grinder that makes them into meal that is added into animal feed (how nice). The females are taken and raised until they are mature enough to lay eggs at which point they are taken to have their beaks and some of their toes cut off without any use of anesthesia, and then stuffed into a cage with hundreds or thousands of other hens.
Lets talk beef... Have you ever thought of how you get milk from a cow? Most people know that milk comes from a cow's udders, but have you ever thought of how a cow produces milk? Well, it is just like any other female- you have to give birth! Basically farmers impregnate a cow and then when she has her calf, it is immediately taken from her and if it is a male, it is either killed for veal steak (baby cow meat) or raised for slaughter upon "maturity". The females are taken and when they reach maturity, they get impregnated have their baby and the process starts over again. So we covered the calves, but back to the mama cow... After giving birth and having her baby taken from her, she is hooked up to machinery day after day to suck all of the milk from her utters, and when she starts running dry they impregnate her again to start it all over. Can you imagine that? Having a child and having it taken from you so that you can have your child's food supply drained from your body and sent off some place to be used to feed somebody else?
Are you feeling piggish? Swine are also made to face a violent life and death experience. As soon as a week after birth a piglet gets it's tail chopped off, again, with no use of anesthesia and then is raised to be as fat as possible as young as possible. When they are deemed plump enough, these pigs are taken and dropped STILL ALIVE into a vat of scolding water to kill them. They are then tossed in a machine that tears off their hair and skin, sometimes still alive.
All of the above mentioned animals are made to live in their own filth for the entirety of their lives too. This causes many issues in the animals such as respiratory infections and lesions in the throat and lungs. Not to mention of course, that when these animals are processed they usually have feces on them still which makes it's way into your food. Every wonder why it is recommended that you wash your food before you consume it?
In a brighter light, however, there are places that treat animals the way that they should be treated. Local farms, or small farms, generally treat their animals with dignity and respect, letting the animals roam free and eat grass (like they are supposed to be doing) instead of shoving corn and grains that the animals are unable to digest down their throats. You can find these meats at local co-ops or buy directly from the farm (but usually processed and picked up from a local butcher store). Also the terms "free roaming" or "pasture fed" will lead you in the right direction!
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