apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

First of all, this is very sad and proves that our ways of processing food are way beyond repair. Look where the food is going, school lunch programs and fast food. I would argue that the school lunch program can be turned around through activism but fast food, processed food, these things will not change in our lifetime.

Most of the meat has been consumed and the danger is based primarily on the fact that the meat may have come from "downed" animals.

Keep in mind that the Federal Inspector's regulations regarding slaughtering animals for consumption requires that that animal must be able to walk itself to the kill room.

So, any animals that may have broken an ankle or leg en route to the kill room, which happens often in the barbaric world of cattle processing, is deemed "down." That animal must be shot and burned even though it is not sick, diseased, immune-compromised.

I know this for a fact from talking to a family member who is a cowboy. He was herding some cattle to be slaughtered and one animal was pushed into a fence and broke its ankle. He tried hard to tape it up and get it to walk but the inspector noticed the weakness in the animal and said it wasn't going to the kill floor. He argued with him and said that it was a perfectly fine animal as he knows the animal (as well as all the other animals in the herd) but still, it wasn't going to be processed. So, he shot it.

The way I see it, the whole industrialized system is thoroughly messed up. Everything from the Federal inspection system, to the feed lots and to the big purchasers. It's big-big business, from the corn to the box.

In the end, it's what is sacrificed to get a heavier box.

This situation really shows the deep seated illness that is present in our society. To ship this meat off to kids--shows a total lack of humanity. I hope that at the very least the media attention on this subject will help to awaken people to what they are eating. At least a little.

Did that video really come from the AP?

The M.D. that was being interviewed was from the HUMAN Society.

One note on e. coli:

I think the Federal government would rather assume all beef is contaminated with e. coli anyways. That way, they can just irradiate all of it. Much more efficient, eh?

http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/foodreview/jan1997/JAN97E.PDF

(i ascend onto my soap box)

i'm so glad i'm vegan/vegetarian (i sometimes slip and have some dairy when i'm out). i don't have to worry about such nastiness in my body nor contribute to such a disgraceful slaughterhouse industry. boo!

utterly heartbreaking.

Why not just irradiate all of us and get it over with quicker!

My husband worked with federal meat inspectors in Canada, and so I know that the large meat processing plants here all have federal meat inspectors on-site, so I don't think this could ever happen in Canada. All the meat inspectors I have ever met have been (how shall I put this?)...most impressive. Definitely not the sort of people to be intimidated and very serious about their work.

Provincial plants tend to be smaller, and I am not sure how the meat inspection is done. I don't think you could find such a situation on such a massive scale going on though.

That said, we cut back on meat after all my husband's visits to the kill floor. He witnessed ritual slaughter (i.e., for Kosher and Halal meat); that was particularly hard to watch, as the animals are not stunned first.

I think that we really must face how animals are treated in the meat production industry -- there is so much that can be done to improve the quality of their lives, and limit the fear and agony of their deaths. Dr. Temple Grandin has done some very important work in the field, and if all plants followed her guidelines and designs, it would be a less cruel world for animals.

Unfortunately, the USDA is opposed to the Humane Slaughter Act, and violations of the Act carry no penalties. Since stopping the line to re-knock conscious animals causes "down time" and results in fewer profits, the Humane Slaughter Act is usually bypassed and ignored by USDA supervisors.

@monika 1,

No way, never in Canada!

I appreciate the pride and trust that you have for your great country but do you really believe that?

Canadian beef is very popular in the United States believe it or not. Why? Because it's usually cheaper than American beef.

Canada is a major exporter of beef to other parts of the world. I'm not sure of the metric tonnage but it's pretty big.

I would encourage you to explore Canada's legislation regarding animal cruelty as it relates to livestock. I'm sure you will find that just like the US, not everyone votes the same way.

Art:

as i said in my post, I've met with a number of meat inspectors, and yes, do trust them. My husband has been to many kill floors. I trust the information I get from him. I spoke with him about this story, and in his experience, he just can't see the same thing happening in Canada because of the system and practices we have. No, Canada does not have a humane system either; Dr.Grandin's guidelines and designs need to be adopted everywhere.

Canadian beef was popular in the U.S. because until this year, our dollar was a lot lower than the U.S. dollar; for a good part of the last decade, it was around 60 cents -- it had nothing to do with lower quality production methods. As a matter of fact, a good part of Canadian beef is grass-fed as opposed to the corn-fed U.S. beef -- most prefer the taste of the former, which makes it a popular export.

@monika 1,

I'm not saying that Canada has low quality production, I'm just saying that Canada is still factory farming beef on a major scale, much like the United States. Yes, Canada has a different grading system, it's graded more on leanness than marbling.

When you say most importers prefer the taste of grass-fed Canadian beef I would have to disagree. This, I believe is another challenge that restaurants and markets have to deal with. Corn fed beef is for lack of a better word, juicier, than grass fed beef. Politics aside, many people will prefer the corn fed beef over the grass fed beef if they were judging by flavor and texture.

This was disgusting. I'm glad I've been a vegetarian since I was 10 and read "Meat on the Menu: Do We Really Need It?"

In the near future, we are probably going to learn that global warming is probably caused by burning down the Amazon rain forest to graze cattle, among other things. Don't eat beef! Our teeth don't look like a tiger's or lion's, do they? Do we humans run and kill hooved animals by jumping on them and giving a killing bite on the neck like a true carnivore? Yeah, I didn't think so, either.

kaanswfm,

I would argue that our teeth DO look like a tiger's or lion's... we've still got discernable and sharply pointed canines, even if they're not nearly as pronounced as a big cat's. Those are meant for ripping and tearing... not something you need for munching on an apple or stalk of celery. As for humans running and killing hooved animals, that is EXACTLY what primitive man used to do. In fact, humans are such excellent long distance runners that they used to run their prey until exhaustion, basically chasing the damn thing until it collapsed of exhaustion and then would slaughter it and drag it back to the tribe. Make no mistake, humans are still predators, even if they don't have big teeth and claws.

Thank you Monika1 for your comments.
I was a vegetarian for my first 12 years, and now I only buy organic meats with a little hope that their treatment is somewhat better. This just breaks my heart. I sincerely wish that people in ALL countries that eat meat will become aware of this situation and act on it.
But with that said, what do we do?

@evamae,

I have a few ideas.

Continue to buy organic or better yet, locally raised, pastured beef and hope that other people will too.

Change people's eating habits. Stop producing fast food and processed foods. Get rid of chain restaurants. Teach people how to cook in schools and the importance of cooking humanely and naturally raised meats.

Have to agree with everything in art's last post; back home in North America, we only bought organic meat from a small butcher and an organic farmer, both of whom we developed a personal relationship with.

Organic meat (especially what you buy from a small butcher) tends to come from small producers who tend to treat their animals more humanely, even through the slaughter process. Although local -- i.e., provincial -- regulations may change things (trouble is brewing in British Columbia on this front for example), generally, animals from small producers can be butchered on-site (frequently, they have the facilities) or go to small abattoirs nearby, minimizing stress. Not a hard and fast rule though, but something worth supporting.

Dr. Temple Grandin also speaks to this issue.

wrt the virtues of grass versus corn-fed beef, an interesting comparison was done by the CBC:

http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/market/files/food/beef/index2.html

The nutritional analysis they did was not quite complete -- just examining the level of fat instead of the quality of the fat. Just like it is now accepted that all oils do not provide the same nutritive value, so it is with animal fat -- fat that is the product of grasses (and not all grasses are equal either...) is not the same as fat that is the product of corn or soy. Corn, high in sugar and used to fatten up animals quickly, is high in omega 6, whereas grasses produce meat, milk and fats high in omega 3. While the body needs both, it needs them in a certain ratio, and modern diets are too high in omega 6 and too low in omega 3, now thought to be a leading cause of obesity (at least by the French, who do not have excessive portion sizes).

Further, corn is an essential part of the feed lot system. And since cows were never meant to eat corn, it wreaks havoc on their digestive system, necessitating greater use of antibiotics (art, I am surprised at you on this one).

more good info on grass versus corn fed beef:
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200305/kummer

http://www.sierraclub.org/e-files/grassfed.asp

wrt to food inspection, there are a number of things that should be done.

First off, a meaningful designation for the term organic (scares me that Wal-Mart is now getting on the organic bandwagon -- because it is likely not the same thing as a small farmer's organic.... ).

Another point -- I think it is pretty obvious this horrible Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. is indicative of a failure of the meat inspection system.

One thing that stands out about the U.S. system is that it is handled by the U.S.D.A., which is also responsible for promoting agricultural trade, and is a very large bureaucracy. One of the reasons in Canada that food inspection was hived off from the department of agriculture into it's own agency was to specifically eliminate the possibility of any confusion of purpose (i.e., no interference from the folks promoting beef into the meat inspection). Indeed, almost 10 years ago, there was a report critical of the state of meat inspection -- that animals were allowed to be treated cruelly, etc. -- but the issues were quickly dealt with by the new agency. The flat structure really helps -- it is less bureaucratic, and meat inspectors and vets are more empowered. It is why BSE cases are caught in Canada (BSE is another discussion, but doesn't it seem odd that there have never been any cases found in the U.S. -- afterall, there are more cows, and they had consumed the same tainted feed... last year, Canada did almost 60,000 tests for BSE, and the USDA only 40,000... relying on the quick tests that yield a high rate of flase negatives....).

Anyway, this is all something to pressure the candidates with...

to add to art's ideas (as if I haven't posted enough on this subject...!) --

...somehow, we need to teach people to appreciate food -- to really taste it, and honour the labour and craft of producing good food... the French, with their Appellation d’origine contrôlée may serve as a good model...

...Eliminate people's dependancy on, and desire for, cheap food...

I'm with you all the way monika 1,

I know the damage that results from feeding cattle corn. I don't believe in this system.

But what I believe and what the masses believe, or should I say, what the masses don't care about, is the problem.

I kind of see it like changing your cat from dry food to wet food. Once that cat gets a taste of that food from the can, he's not going back to the dry. The cat doesn't know how or why that food is in a can, he just knows that it's good and that's all he's going to eat for the rest of his life.

So, because the current beef production system is so efficient, keeping prices reasonable, and has a flavor profile people have become addicted to, people will have to become conscientious and idealistic when it comes to eating beef if there is to be a change in the system. In my opinion, it would be impossible to change more than a small percentage of the meat eating population.

Restaurants and markets that help spread this ideal compromise only a small percentage of the food industry. The rest is up to the grocery store chains, fast food chains, sit-down chains, manufacturers, etc. I guess it would be like Chrysler telling America that they need to drive electric cars.

People need to be more aware of where our food comes from and quit thinking the government is going to protect us from all the bad in the world.

I was just talking to someone who told me that a lot of cows were injured and killed from the tornadoes that have struck recently.

I wonder if any of the cattle from the above video were victims of that storm. From what I saw in the video I didn't see workers taking joy in torturing livestock. I saw people with miserable jobs trying to get injured animals from one area to another.

How did those animals get injured? What is the humane policy for dealing with injured animals?

I find it strange that people are sickened by the thought of injured, suffering animals but not by the idea of killing and processing animals. weird.

I'm with you, mia. It's okay to slaughter and process healthy animals, but slaughtering and processing injured animals that would otherwise be shot and thrown away is sickening?

This topic is so distressing to me I couldn't even begin to articulate a sentence, but Monika 1's comment "eliminate people's dependency and desire for cheap food' really sums it up so well. That picture on the front page of the terrible mad cow mass slaughter put me off beef years ago and the ongoing stories about the work conditions in processing plants make chicken revolting to me. Drive through eastern NC and take a whiff of hog farms. Understanding the real cost of cheap meat in light of environmental, animal. human and health degradations make it not so attractive. I agree with Art that some people will not change.

Ah, the AT posts just keep getting regurgitated...
I fear that the AT's solution of "Buy Local Meat" does not properly address the issue. AT is assuming, as do most "localvores", that meat from local animals is safer. Just because one eats meat from a farm closer to her does not mean: a) the meat does not contain any disease; and/or b) the meat comes from animals that were humanely reared and slaughtered. Sure, items a and b are more likely to occur on a smaller scale farm compared to a giant factory farm. But how many "localvores" have actually VISITED the farm they buy their meat from? How about just not eating meat?