Over the last few years antibiotic-free, pasture-raised meat has seen a marked rise in popularity due to increased demand from big players like Chipotle and Hyatt Hotels... and experts say it's changing the game.
Economists estimate antibiotic-free meat accounts for around 2 percent of total meat sales, which is still a tiny amount. But Paul Willis, who works with Niman Ranch in Iowa, the farm that raises antibiotic-free pigs for Chipotle, tells NPR that the market for what he does has increased dramatically in recent years.
Even Hyatt Hotels announced this month that it plans to offer offer antibiotic-free, naturally raised meat, poulty and dairy options at all of its hotels. As consumer awareness has grown, Chef Greg Lopez of Hyatt Hotels tells NPR that "people are showing that they're willing to pay more for food that they perceive to be more healthful."
Read More: Antibiotic-Free Meat Business Is Booming, Thanks To Chipotle at NPR
Related: Grass-Fed vs. Grain-Fed Beef: What's the Difference, and Why Does It Matter?
(Image: Sarah Willis/courtesy Niman Ranch via NPR)
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The rise in popularity of these meats is such great news for the health of people and the environment. People would be a lot healthier if they would eat less meat, smaller portions, and only eat meats that are pasture raised, antibiotic and hormone free. Or you know, become a vegetarian. Look at those cute faces!
Those are cute faces, sure! But there are some reasons for choosing ethical, limited meat-eating over pure vegetarianism. To take just one, I think a vegetarian diet is tougher to keep local and low-processed, for many of us. Tofu and many varieties of beans arrive from far, far away.
This is a good step for business to be making and for the world in general. I'm glad to hear stories like this.
what cute little piggies
I heard this story on NPR a couple of weeks ago. Definitely well worth a listen.
I listened to this story on NPR yesterday and the way they explained how antibiotics (and antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria & viruses) get into our system is just disgusting, as well as the way the animals are raised... we end up eating very sick animals, and that ends up equating to more healthcare (and more antibiotics). It's a simple solution, it's just a problem for the US corporations because they don't make money off of that solution (small farms raising healthy animals). Sad vicious cycle. I've never watched those documentaries on the meat industry, but just listening to the story about made me cry. Such cute little animals! Every living thing deserves a chance to be healthy.
Yes, I found the article encouraging as well.
Those pigs are so cute! I bet they are delicious
USERNAME26--
But there we disagree. I do think it is fine to meat and I do think there is both ethical and unethical meat. I choose to consume one and not the other. If you don't believe that any meat-eating is ethical, don't eat meat.
But you know, you get more flies with honey.
@JudiAU - totally agree with your POV and your comment. Separately, my personal opinion is that everything in moderation, there's no need to gorge oneself on meat; and choosing where you source your meat is important as well. It's good to be at the top of the food chain.
@Katy Did.
I'm sorry, but I think you've been misinformed. A vegetarian (or better yet, vegan) diet is actually much better for the environment, even when it includes non-local foods. For one thing, food miles aren't the only thing that count--there are many inputs into food. Livestock farming requires way more resources (like water and fuel) than growing crops, and it's more polluting (methane, run-off, etc.). Livestock farming also comes with much higher risks of illnesses that can spread to humans, like H1N1 or salmonella.
For another thing, there's no reason a vegan diet needs to include any more non-local foods than a non-vegan diet. If you choose to buy exotic foods like bananas or quinoa, that's your choice, but that's not a "must" on a vegan diet. And soy is one of North America's top crops--not something you'd necessarily need to import. If you're a total vegan you need a B12 supplement, but those are readily available and produced in many places.
Eat meat if you want, but don't believe that it's "more" ethical to do so than to be a vegan, because that contradicts the facts. The less suffering, the better--human AND animal. Eating meat impacts not just your health, but everyone through increased climate change, pollution, and zoonotic diseases. So even if you don't give a lick about animal welfare, there are selfish reasons to be vegan.
As happy a I am that less conventional meat raising is getting popular press, I keep seeing "pasture raised" and "antibiotic free" next to each other in these sentences as if one implies the other. Seeing "natural," "hormone free," or "antibiotic free" on your meat labels does not at all mean that it was raised in non-confinement. Be sure you look for both.
Also, I was a vegetarian for 15 years. I'm a veterinarian. I worked in the animal welfare science laboratory at my university for years. I went back to eating (only pasture-raised, local) meat because the evidence all pointed to the fact that spending money has more impact than withholding money on producing changes in the market. Also, your vegetables INCLUDE livestock in their carbon footprint. To grow even organic beans, they are likely using organic fertilizer, which includes manure. It's all a circle. Without animal waste (or chemical fertilizers), plants don't grow like we want them to. Many grasslands depend on grazing behaviors to keep them healthy. Grazing animals transport seeds, and keep grass blades at a level that encourages root growth. You really can't have a healthy vegetable crop without involving animal agriculture to some degree. Unfortunately we can't all feed ourselves just by foraging in the woods anymore.