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Is Meat Wrong? I'm Starting To Feel That Maybe It Is

  • Thread starter Thread starter Diabeticliberty
  • Start date Start date
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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
My wife used to always 'test subject' me with a couple of spoonfuls of her food before she ate it. I must say that I could not get on with quorn but then neither could she. In terms of cooking, she handled pretty much all of it before we split. I am certainly not starving since the split and am finding my way around cooking stuff. If I am gonna drop eating meat I think now is as good a time to do it as any. I don't think I could go the whole hog and not eat fish either but I have masses of respect for those of you who do. Particularly considering the somewhat unpredictable nature of our condition sometimes. You have all given me much to consider. I find it very reassuring that you all manage your relative lifestyles and are able to do so without consuming meat on ethical grounds. The more I look at this the more sense it makes to me to try to do what I believe is the right thing 🙂
 
Here on the Isle of Mull we eat almost as much fish and seafood as meat, and both are local. The local langoustines are available live at the local fish shop, and are superb. The beef, lamb and pork are all free range, and I know where they come from because the name of the farm is on the label. I have no ethical problem eating meat, but I will not eat meat when I don't know where it comes from.

I suppose the only exception to that rule is the Creon capsules I have to take because of my pancreatitis. The enzymes they contain are taken from pigs in America, where animal welfare is not up to UK standards.
 
Diabeticliberty said:
I thought that farmers were no longer allowed to kill their own sheep,and cattle? I believe the legislation governing this was changed in fairly recent years. I am not completely sure so could be wrong but I think farmers now have to use commercial abattoirs. Some of the video footage around is pretty horrific in fairness. I am certainly leaning towards the thought of it.
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They do use commercial slaughterhouses but I know them well and know the welfare of their animals is of great concern to them, so they are very careful to select "appropriate" businesses. I actually became vegetarian after talking to some "person" who worked in a local slaughterhouse and his stories which I hope to God were tinged with some very much mis-judged bravado upset me so much I couldn't do it. I don't have the slightest problem killing an animal for food, I have a problem with animals suffering for food or fashion.

It's a choice, I personally don't wear leather shoes, and will only buy leather items if I either have no other choice (non-leather shoes used to be an issue with my size 8 hooves, not so anymore) or if they only use leather that's a biproduct of the meat industry, I don't use anything tested on animals and for full disclosure I'm not a fan of medical testing on animals either, although obviously I'm not going to die for that principle so I'm a hypocrite, but I'm happy with that. I have a great deal of respect for all living creatures as it happens, which includes most if not all humans 🙂

Oh and I the world goes into nuclear meltdown and all the crops are irradiated and all that's left is animals I need to kill myself, of course I'd kill it to eat it (yes someone actually asked me that), I'm not pretending to be a paragon, I'm exercising the choices as I have them right now. I've never really understood the muppets who think questions like that are challenging, hell i'd kill them if it came to it (for food, not casual homicide) 😉
 
@KookyCat your post sums up exactly what my current thoughts seem to be and your position is not where I am just yet but where I feel I would end up. This is with the exception of the casual homicide bit as I could quite easily beat some of the 'warm wonderful individuals' that I have great pleasure to meet around the head with half a herring until they could spout no more utter bile 😉. I suggested previously in this thread that those of you are type 1 and have replied suggesting that you can all manage and manage well your relative conditions without meat on an ethical basis offers me some degree of hope that I will be able to achieve the same.
 
mikeyB said:
Here on the Isle of Mull we eat almost as much fish and seafood as meat, and both are local. The local langoustines are available live at the local fish shop, and are superb. The beef, lamb and pork are all free range, and I know where they come from because the name of the farm is on the label. I have no ethical problem eating meat, but I will not eat meat when I don't know where it comes from.

I suppose the only exception to that rule is the Creon capsules I have to take because of my pancreatitis. The enzymes they contain are taken from pigs in America, where animal welfare is not up to UK standards.
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I hope to end up not eating any meat. If however faced with having the choice to take an animal derivative medication or die or become extremely ill then I would take the medication also 😉
 
Diabeticliberty said:
I thought that farmers were no longer allowed to kill their own sheep,and cattle? I believe the legislation governing this was changed in fairly recent years. I am not completely sure so could be wrong but I think farmers now have to use commercial abattoirs. Some of the video footage around is pretty horrific in fairness. I am certainly leaning towards the thought of it.
Click to expand...
There's nothing to stop farm animals being slaughtered on the premises as long as it's done in an human way. There are travelling slaughter men/lorries that carry out this service.
Personally I much prefer this than having to take to the slaughter house.
 
I did spend a year or so as a vegetarian some years back, but started having dreams about meat, which sort of convinced me that my heart wasn't in it. The other thing about a vegetarian diet is that it is very -how can I put this- flatulogenic.:(
 
Diabeticliberty said:
I thought that farmers were no longer allowed to kill their own sheep,and cattle? I believe the legislation governing this was changed in fairly recent years. I am not completely sure so could be wrong but I think farmers now have to use commercial abattoirs. Some of the video footage around is pretty horrific in fairness. I am certainly leaning towards the thought of it.
Click to expand...
It depends on licensing. If the farm holds an Abattoir licence and can comply with the (very strict) Animal Welfare/Meat Hygiene regulations AND have the services of an expensive MHS Inspector on site when they're slaughtering / butchering then they can do their own kill but, usually, those hoops are just too much and too costly for most farms to comply with. Similarly with small Butchers premises, some used to do their own slaughter but for the same reasons as Farmers, most now send animals they've bought to commercial slaughterhouses. For these slaughterhouses it wouldn't be in their interests to be cruel to the livestock as it's inefficient and would damage the meat and so reduce profit.

there was a TV Programme on a few years ago called 'Kill It, Cook It, Eat It'. That showed the entire process and, in my opinion, should be compulsory viewing. That way everyone knows and understands what happens before passing judgement and then they can make their minds up either way, but do so properly informed.
 
Can someone explain why its unethical to eat meat but prawns and fish are OK? because I can't see the difference.
 
Vicsetter said:
Can someone explain why its unethical to eat meat but prawns and fish are OK? because I can't see the difference.
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Strictly speaking Vic there is no difference I suppose. This subject causes me some degree of moral dilemma. Farmed salmon used your have a pretty horrific lifestyle penned up in very tight areas podded with lots of other fish and filled with sea lice. Things have now thankfully improved but it still isn't right. From my own point of view if and when I remove meat from my diet I will still require a source of protein and I do like fish. My other great contradiction is the fact that I earn quite a big chunk of money from teaching trout and salmon fishing. I insist that all of my clients return everything since I am completely opposed to killing wild fish. The thing is then I am of course completely wrong to teach people to outwit and trap a wild animal for the fun of it. I cling on to the paper thin theory that fish do not feel emotion or pain. But maybe they do? Cattle, sheep and pigs however certainly do and this is my big personal moral question.
 
Annette said:
http://www.fishpain.com/fish-and-pain-receptors.htm
Other websites with alternative views also exist...
(Disclosure: I eat some meat (ethically sourced) but not much cos I'm not keen on it and fish (ditto). I'm playing devil's advocate here, to present the facts only, and not to persuade/dissuade anyone.)
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The information on this Website has been greatly contested by ghillies and guides in the Scotland who earn a living from fish and fish management. Fish certainly have a row of receptors down the lateral line that runs down either side of their flanks. These receptors do respond to stimuli. Is pain felt? Hmmmmmmm I hope not. I am however seeking to justify what I do in m own eyes. At least by ceasing eating meat it is a step in the right direction. At least I hope it is 😉
 
Diabeticliberty said:
I am however seeking to justify what I do in m own eyes. At least by ceasing eating meat it is a step in the right direction. At least I hope it is 😉
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My take is: You have to do what makes you comfortable in your own skin (provided its legal 🙄). If that's cut out meat but keep on with fish, go for it.
 
I've decided to give up meat this year. I've never been very comfortable with eating meat anyway, and I was just doin it because of habit and convenience really. I'm also a vet nurse, and it didn't sit well with me that I nurse animals all day, and then eat meat for dinner!
I haven't given up fish yet, but I plan to do so once I've got to grips more with a veggie diet.
I don't have a definitive answer to wether fish feel pain, however, I am uncomfortable with them not being killed as soon as possible after they leave the water; I know not all fisherman do this, but some do.
I have no problem with people who eat meat (unlike a vegan friend of mine!) however, I do think people should be aware of where their meat has come from, and how it was treated prior to slaughter. I would rather eat game, that has been shot in the wild than an animal that has been driven to an abbotoir!
I do find t more difficult, as someone else mentioned, to eat veggie and low carb when eating out!
 
I went veggie aged 15 because it was the cool thing to do and would annoy my parents probably, also all those ethical reasons. I went vegan at university, but stopped that when travelling in Central America (and ate the refried beans which were refried in some kind of animal fat).

When I met my husband, he ate fish, so I gave that a go after a while. I started eating some meat when I was diagnosed with diabetes as my wrong diagnosis led to ridiculous bs levels if I ate carbs, so I wanted to add some more protein. Still eat a lot of veggie dinners and could of course go back, will see.

I met a 92 year old woman today buying chesnuts in a jar who told me that she had been a veggie since she was 8 years old when she had eaten a chicken that turned out to her pet one that her father had killed and cooked. She seemed full of beans 🙂
 
An interesting thread. I was vegetarian some years back for ethical & animal welfare reasons, but eat meat again now.

We always buy organic or free range meat, and would not, for example, buy cheap meat not knowing where it's from. We also have Quorn mince quite a lot, and I like Linda McCartney sausages. I do find it difficult going out though, and usually eat veggie or fish in restaurants. I'm not type 1 so don't have that difficulty, but I do find myself torn between justifying eating meat and the consequent eco arguments against it, and going full time veggie.
 
stephknits said:
I met a 92 year old woman today buying chesnuts in a jar who told me that she had been a veggie since she was 8 years old when she had eaten a chicken that turned out to her pet one that her father had killed and cooked. She seemed full of beans 🙂
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she probably was ...literally :D boom-tish
 
To eat meat or not is an entirely personal decision, albeit an emotive one. You must do what you feel is right for you and your needs and health.

Many of my family members are farmers so I see both sides of the argument so it would seem I am sitting on the fence somewhat.

Treatment of animals over the last 20 years has improved- we have more free range hens now for example. Before making any decisions I would suggest people did a little research to find the true facts of the matter. I know many healthy vegetarians and vegans, but I also know many healthy meat and fish eaters.
 
And how do you know someone is a Vegan? They will tell you over & over & over again!!!!
 
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