Author: Lidya Abebe

As I have mentioned in the previous entries, the meat industry is full of unethical practices. For years the industry was able to keep these unethical practices hidden, however, articles, books, and documentaries have brought them to light.
The factory farming industry is focused on maximizing its output and minimizing its cost of production, to gain the most profit. This especially applies to the U.S. meat and poultry industry, which aims to make its products faster and bigger. One of the ways the industry tries to minimize its costs is by feeding animals, such as cows, corn. The U.S. government subsidies corn, as a result, farmers produce and sell corn at really cheap prices. These meat companies then feed it to cows, that are designed to eat grass. When cows are fed corn, dangerous mutations can occur and in some cases, the bacteria E. Coli evolves. This deadly bacteria can easily spread from one cow to another since these animals are kept in crowded and filthy feedlots. E. Coli can also contaminate vegetables such as lettuce and spinach because of runoff from factory farms. In addition, ground beef at the grocery store has thousands of cows mixed up in it, which increases the likelihood of the meat being contaminated with a disease.
To meet with the demand for Chicken, companies are raising them in half the time, but making them double the size they were in the 1950s. Scientists have also designed chickens to have larger breast because white meat is popular. Chickens are fed a diet of genetically modified feed, they are given antibiotics and other growth enhancers. This leads them to grow so big that their bones can’t keep up with their weight and they are unable to move. The chickens live in horrible conditions, they are kept in crowded cages and they often have no access to sunlight. Their condition provides breeding grounds for bacteria and mutations.
Furthermore, meatpacking is one of the most dangerous jobs in America and it is done by a lot of undocumented immigrants and poor people of color. They are often exposed to infections and diseases. Workers also suffer from a high number of injuries.
One should consider these factors when they go to the grocery store to purchase meat. They should consider their health, their family’s health, the mistreatment of meat industry workers, the environmental pollution and the suffering of animals. Throughout my personal project, I have learned that the process of changing to a vegetarian or vegan diet is challenging, but it is worth a try.

Citations

Food, Inc. By Robert Kenner, Robert Kenner, Robert Kenner, Richard Pearce, Eric Schlosser, Eric Schlosser, Melissa Robledo, William Pohlad, Jeff Skoll, Robin Schorr, Diane Weyermann, Elise Pearlstein, Elise Pearlstein, Kim Roberts, Kim Roberts, Michael Pollan, Michael Pollan, Gary Hirshberg, Joel Salatin, and Mark Adler. Directed by Richard Pearce.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because it revolves so much around food and togetherness. When people think of Thanksgiving the first thing that comes to mind is probably the turkey, which is like a symbol and a decoration for the holiday. What stands out the most to me, however, is the baked mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, biscuits, greens, and pies. Even before I became a vegetarian I thought these dishes outshined the turkey.
This year, as always, I was really excited to eat some good food and I also wanted my family to limit the number of dishes made with meat. Some people might think that there aren’t many options during this holiday for vegetarians, but I think there are plenty. My family used to be one of these people, however, this year we made a variety of dishes that were all vegetarian except for one.
It took a little bit of convincing, but my mom decided to not cook a turkey, which I was really happy about. Although, no one in my family really liked turkey we usually had it because it was a tradition. We all agreed that we should have an alternative, especially, because the turkey was too big and there was always so much leftover. Then we ended up cooking chicken instead, which is relatively smaller and arguably tastes better. It was so much fun helping my family make vegetarian Thanksgiving dishes and we felt good because they were much healthier than dishes made with meat. It was also nice seeing my family try to minimize animal suffering by avoiding meat consumption as much as they could on the holiday.

Since my last project entry both Fatimah and I have been trying to get out of our comfort zones and challenge ourselves when it comes to our diet. My goal was to adopt a vegan lifestyle for at least a week, and hers was to avoid eating pork. I wanted to challenge myself because as I was urging people to cut meat out of their diet, I felt that it was only right that I also take the initiative to eliminate all animal byproduct from mine. The process was extremely hard for both of us. Although she was successful at times, Fatimah found it difficult to resist the fresh made bacon and egg breakfast sandwiches made at the Marquis dining hall. She claimed that it was too hard to avoid pork because most of her go-to meals for breakfast included bacon. According to Fatimah, she was so accustomed to eating pork that she sometimes forgot about her pork free diet. Even though she wasn’t completely successful in sticking to her diet, I commend her for being courageous enough to at least try it out. It is important to recognize that these changes take time because it is hard for people to completely avoid foods that they are so accustomed to consuming.

I experienced a similar struggle when I tried a vegan diet. I had already struggled with finding vegetarian options that taste good at the dining halls, so finding tasty vegan dishes was even more challenging. I couldn’t eat the crepes, bagel with cream cheese or cereal that I usually ate for breakfast. Finding vegan foods that provided the nutrition and energy I needed throughout the day posed a greater challenge than I had imagined. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to continue with the diet after a couple of days. I am planning to attempt veganism again over winter break because I will have more control over what I eat and more options at home.

Since my last personal project entry, I have been more committed to starting a dialogue with both vegetarians and nonvegetarians about eliminating meat from their diet. It is interesting comparing the views of these two groups towards the idea of vegetarianism or veganism. Some of the vegetarians I discussed the issue with were passionate about the lifestyle. Similar to my attitude when I first started my journey, they expressed to me that they thought their dietary options would be limited and ultimately lead them to give up. They revealed that as time went on they began to be more confident in their choice and realized there are many options that allow them to have a fulfilling and balanced diet. Some adapted to a vegetarian diet so well that they challegened themselves even more and became vegans.

During my talk with non vegetarians I noticed that they incorporated meat in most of their meals that they thought it would be virtually impossible to live without it. For example, Fatimah Fair, a student at Lafayette, is passionate about the environment and the well being of animals, however, when asked to consider a vegetarian lifestyle she simply replied with “What am I going to eat? I would faint” Many others share this view that eliminating meat from their diet  would be too drastic of a change. Their dependence on meat overpowers their sympathy for animals. While most agree that the meat industry can be unethical, their lack of action is also influenced by their idea that they are not powerful enough to create change. One of their concerns is giving up meat when other people will continue to consume it and still cause damage.

Considering these viewpoints has lead me to reflect on how I am challenging myself and question if what I am doing is enough. I came to the conclusion that I have become too comfortable with my vegetarian lifestyle and that it is time for me to take the next step. When asking others like Fatimah to take a risk and try something new, I figured it would only be right if I did the same thing so I decided to try out a vegan diet. As stated in The Guide for Nonviolence Practical Action Handbook  by Michael Nagler, to put nonviolence energy to work “ we must have in mind specific goals and must understand how we intend to meet those goals”(28). When deciding to be vegan and convincing people like Fatimah to challenge themselves, I kept this quote in mind to make sure I was setting realistic goals for them and myself. Fatimah, expressed to me that it would be too big of a transition for her completely eliminate meat, so as the first step we agreed that she will eliminate everything else except poultry from her diet.

As I continue with this project, I plan to inform people that they don’t have to dramatically change their diet all at once. The process can be gradual and proportional to their comfort level.