Becki Walker writes about food and crafts recipes. In this Fridays
series, she examines the culture of farmers markets.
Nearly everyone’s heard (probably over and over again) that one of the best ways to lower your carbon footprint and love the planet is to eat less meat, especially red meat. Eating less meat’s better for your health, too – when you’ve removed meat from your plate, there’s more room for foods lower in fat and calories, like fruits and vegetables. But what if, even after trying to be the best environmentalist ever, you’ve still got a craving for something fleshy?
Image: Flickr/CreativeCommons
If you’re going to eat meat, make it as sustainable and humane as possible. Why? Take it from me, I’ve personally visited a couple of large-scale farming operations, and it wasn’t a pretty sight. One chicken farm featured cages of birds stacked one atop the other, so that the birds literally crapped on top of each other. The birds’ life expectancy was something like 15 weeks, as opposed to the 5-10 years a chicken would live on a conventional farm. The cows at the dairy I saw never actually had their feet touch the ground – they were born onto concrete pads, and then trucked from one barn to the other throughout the span of their lives.
Because of these cramped and often unsanitary living conditions, factory farmed animals often need to be pumped full of antibiotics and hormones to keep them from getting too sick. Their waste also creates a huge problem for aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Removing animals from farms that also produce vegetables dismantles what Wendell Berry refers to as an “elegant solution.” On a diverse farm, animals fertilize the vegetables and fruits, eliminating the need for fertilizer inputs and waste management solutions.
How can you be sure the meat you buy is doing less to harm the planet? Just ask the farmer! Sustainable Table has a lot of great resources for conscientious shoppers, in addition to some pretty interesting videos - if you haven’t seen “The Meatrix,” do yourself a favor and check the site out.
One of the most important questions you can ask is, “How was the animal raised?” As I discussed in the last article, remember Rule #3 of the farmers market: be kind. It’s hard to discuss your livelihood with someone who sounds as if s/he’s criticizing how you do your job.
Other good questions include: “What was the animal fed?,” “Was the animal given hormones, antibiotics, or feed additives?,” and, “How much time did the animal spend outside?” Look for grass-fed animals (they’re not likely to have been fed antibiotics or hormones) or those that are raised on vegetarian feed (remember mad cow? That was because lots of animals were fed, well, parts of other animals.).
Asking about the time the animal spends outside is better than being concerned about the “free range” designation, which is only regulated with poultry meat, not eggs or beef. And free range merely means the animal had access to a door to the outdoors for as little as a few minutes during the day, not that they actually used it.
You may not necessarily find all of the animals you’re used to at the farmers market, and the meat may cost more than grocery store fare. However, many folks (myself included) think that sustainably raised meat is easier on the conscience and the palate, and worth the extra cash. Plus, you’re not ingesting industrial-grade hormones and antibiotics along with your burger or barbecue.
If you’d like to buy sustainable without breaking the bank, look for cheaper cuts of meat: packages of ground meat, ribs, rump or round roasts, brisket, or stew meat. If you’re looking for poultry, stick to buying a whole bird – the less “processing” the meat had to go through, the cheaper it will be.
If you can afford it, think about purchasing a side of meat, or joining a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) organization. Also, try to look for “heritage” breeds if you can – these are rarer subspecies of animals (meat’s version of heirloom vegetables). By buying heritage breeds, you encourage species diversity – and many folks say you get to enjoy extra tasty meat or eggs as well. For more information about heritage foods, check out this website.
Good luck hunting for meat at the market. Just remember: sunshine is spiffy, diversity’s dandy, and grass is good! If you keep those cheesy taglines in mind, you’ll be able to ferret out food that’s had a decent life before heading to your plate.
Search for farmers markets near you using our directory