Meat

I am not a vegetarian, and the closest I ever came to being one was a couple years ago – I had a brief (two month) stint without eating any beef, poultry, pork, or seafood. This, however, does not mean that I haven’t considered it since, or even before for that matter. And the reasons I gave it up for those two months had everything to do with health reasons and nothing to do with animal welfare issues.

I always thought that vegetarians were abrasive, quick to judge, and very, very disdainful (in a pretentious-kind-of-way). And actually, some are. But we all know that you can’t judge an entire group of people based on a few bad apples. So, because of this, and in combination with my insane stubbornness, I refused to give into their beliefs because I did not want to give them the satisfaction. In fact, my sister was a vegetarian for eight years (or something) and I never once considered her ideas as legitimate because shoving ones ideas down another’s throat is a sure fire way to make someone NOT listen.

Now this leads me to my main point. These days, I have been having a hard time actually justifying eating meat. Over the last couple of years, and more so the last one in particular, I have learned a significant amount about the food that we eat. I have learned about factory farms, organic food vs. non-organic food, antibiotics in our livestock, etc. etc. The list really does go on and on, and if anyone is curious about what actually happens on these farms, there is plenty of reading you can do and I would be more than happy to point you in the right direction (typing “how animals are treated in factory farms” in Google is also a good start). These are very important things to talk about, but still not enough to make people change. Hey, I am a prime example of this.

I firmly believe that humans are supposed to eat meat – after all, thats what I learned in biology class. Our ancestors did it, our closest relatives do it, our most distant relatives eat other animals too, so why shouldn’t we? My issue now: human beings have turned eating meat in a respectful and necessary way into an assembly line of genetically altered animals (no mating, no reproducing AT ALL) that are raised and slaughtered in the most unimaginably horrible ways. Combine this with the massive global demand for dirt-cheap meat and we have what is called a vicious cycle. As long as the human population continues to eat meat at an extremely unsustainable rate, there will always be animals raised and killed in this manner. And I also firmly believe that just cutting meat out of your life is not enough – hear this vegetarians – if you are going to give up meat because you don’t agree with how animals are treated, there are actually much more effective ways to make a difference (that aren’t so passive)!

But, for those of you who find it hard to cut that bacon and those chicken wings out of your life, there is good news. We are lucky to come from a country where humanely raised meat is available. And we are also lucky to come from a country where consumer choice matters, in fact it is huge. All it takes is a little research and some extra time on your part. In fact, I have already started some of the work for you.

Where to buy cruelty-free meat in Calgary:

TK Ranch Products – Beef, Chicken, Lamb, Pork – Available at Planet Organic, Community Natural Foods, or delivered right to your door.

Sunworks Farm – Beef, Poultry, Eggs, etc. – Available at Blush Lane Organic Market (Calgary Farmer’s Market)

First Nature Farms – Bison, Beef, Pork, Eggs – Available at Community Natural Foods

I encourage everyone to think about what they are eating. Is properly-raised meat important to you? Is it worth the extra five minute drive, two dollars, or time to research?

We all have the ability to make a difference in how animals are treated, it’s called money, choose where to spend it wisely!

Chicken Factory Farm

Cute little piglets!

I thought this was going to be a one-post wonder, but I think there is much to say, so stay tuned!

 

Planet Organic has two locations in Calgary: 4625 Varsity Drive NW, and, 10233 Elbow Drive SW
The Calgary Farmer’s Market has moved and is now located at 510 77th Avenue SE (Blackfoot and Heritage)
Community Natural Foods has two locations in Calgary: 1304 10 Avenue SW, and, 202 61 Ave SW (Chinook Station)

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