Should We Eat Meat?
- Thread starter santaman2000
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Most rural people did just that well into the 20th century. Granted they preserved meat as well as veg; but they did indeed produce most of their own main food. Purchases were mainly for things such as baking powder, rice, and some processed foods such as peanut butter and condiments which kept well until opened.
I always assumed peanut butter was a modern creation, I'm not sure why, I live on peanut butter so I wish we had the climate for peanut trees I'd forage tonnes of the stuff!
Haha Doh did I say tree? I meant peanut 'bush' honest guv!
I believe you
, you can grow peanuts in the UK by the way, best done in big black containers so the soil stays warmer. You should give it a go.
that's interesting, I may well give it a go, I'm planning on building myself a poly tunnel so perhaps they would do well in a greenhouse environment. Any idea on the sort of yield from one bush? I've no idea how many peanuts it would take to make one decent sized jar but I imagine it's quite a few and if it means turning half my garden into a peanut shrubbery its probably not worth it?
Seemingly a plant will produce between 25 and 50 pods with on average 3 peanuts per pod (Spanish variety) So between 75 and 150 peanuts per plant which works out at between 7 and 3.5 plants to make a jar.
On the jar front here's a quote "The National Peanut Board estimates it takes about 540 peanuts to make a 12-ounce/340gram jar of peanut butter. Thats approximately 45 peanuts per ounce/28gram of peanut butter. If your family buys peanut butter in those large 40-ounce/1134gram mega-jars, each one of those jars takes a whopping 1,800 peanuts to make!"
Good wee page to read. LINK
On the jar front here's a quote "The National Peanut Board estimates it takes about 540 peanuts to make a 12-ounce/340gram jar of peanut butter. Thats approximately 45 peanuts per ounce/28gram of peanut butter. If your family buys peanut butter in those large 40-ounce/1134gram mega-jars, each one of those jars takes a whopping 1,800 peanuts to make!"
Good wee page to read. LINK
I'm quite intrigued by the other blackboard in the top background of santaman2000's photo. It looks like it may be from the same shop. Does it read
Smoking, Drinking & Red Meat
You don't live any longer but it feels like it
?
Smoking, Drinking & Red Meat
You don't live any longer but it feels like it
?
So do Mountain Gorillas and they may have eaten meat in the past but not so much these days.
A better argument might be that we don't want to spend most of our time eating fruit and vegetables, getting another animal to do that for us and then eating it gives us more time to do other things.
The reason we're such a successful blight on the land is that we're not specialist. We have a gut, set of teeth and eye's that allow us to be omnivorous. So we could adapt to whatever surroundings we found ourselves in (well one or two would live long enough). Then we got "smart" and aware and instead of adapting we changed our environment to suit us - whilst not really thinking it through. So yes we can be fruitarians, vegitarians, part-time carnivores. Our bodies will cope. The planet on the other hand...
So do Mountain Gorillas and they may have eaten meat in the past but not so much these days.
A better argument might be that we don't want to spend most of our time eating fruit and vegetables, getting another animal to do that for us and then eating it gives us more time to do other things.
Heh heh! BUT we can live on fruit, veg and grain but not on meat alone. Hence the idea of balanced diets.
The bottom line is that nearly everyone in the UK (and the Western world) eats too much protein. We can't store it and it's hard to convert it to fat, so basically we lose any excess through urinary nitrogen. Maybe we could eat what we need and stop wasting the rest? I guess we could reduce dramatically the amount of farming and processing resources required if we ate what we actually needed rather than what we wanted to eat every now and again.
In regards to the OPs question, 'Should we eat meat?', I'd argue the answer might be 'no'. Should we eat meat as part of a healthy, balanced diet? Yeah - it's our choice. Should we think about where our food comes from? No doubt - whether it's animal or vegetable, it damages the environment when we farm at the scale that we do at the moment. But, we live in the real world and not everyone is aware of, has access to, or can afford good quality food; not everyone has land and the time and skills (or perhaps inclination) to grow their own and be independent of the commercial market. So, I guess we have to be pragmatic and accept the fact that we may not be as ethical as we'd like to be. BUT at least we think about it on this forum.
In regards to the OPs question, 'Should we eat meat?', I'd argue the answer might be 'no'. Should we eat meat as part of a healthy, balanced diet? Yeah - it's our choice. Should we think about where our food comes from? No doubt - whether it's animal or vegetable, it damages the environment when we farm at the scale that we do at the moment. But, we live in the real world and not everyone is aware of, has access to, or can afford good quality food; not everyone has land and the time and skills (or perhaps inclination) to grow their own and be independent of the commercial market. So, I guess we have to be pragmatic and accept the fact that we may not be as ethical as we'd like to be. BUT at least we think about it on this forum.
The bottom line is that nearly everyone in the UK (and the Western world) eats too much protein. We can't store it and it's hard to convert it to fat, so basically we lose any excess through urinary nitrogen. Maybe we could eat what we need and stop wasting the rest? I guess we could reduce dramatically the amount of farming and processing resources required if we ate what we actually needed rather than what we wanted to eat every now and again.
In regards to the OPs question, 'Should we eat meat?', I'd argue the answer might be 'no'. Should we eat meat as part of a healthy, balanced diet? Yeah - it's our choice. Should we think about where our food comes from? No doubt - whether it's animal or vegetable, it damages the environment when we farm at the scale that we do at the moment. But, we live in the real world and not everyone is aware of, has access to, or can afford good quality food; not everyone has land and the time and skills (or perhaps inclination) to grow their own and be independent of the commercial market. So, I guess we have to be pragmatic and accept the fact that we may not be as ethical as we'd like to be. BUT at least we think about it on this forum.
good post Mikey.
I'll put my hand up and say I do eat too much meat. Not so much in the past perhaps and we certainly cut down on the amount of red meat we eat.
I think a lot of people, given the choice (ie the means) to grow their own food would jump at the chance to do so. I'd gladly grow much more if I could but my garden is small and the soil is strewn with rubble left over from when they built the house! Saying that we had some decent strawberries and salad leaves.
I would say that if people had to kill for their own meat though that 99% of the population would not do it.
That being said - being a veggie does not exclude one from the killing of animals. The simple fact is that there is not a farmer in the world who can afford to loose half his crop to pest species like rabbits and pigeons etc. These animals are shot. Simples.
Andy
So do Mountain Gorillas and they may have eaten meat in the past but not so much these days.
A better argument might be that we don't want to spend most of our time eating fruit and vegetables, getting another animal to do that for us and then eating it gives us more time to do other things.
Wasn't trying to make an argument, just giving my opinion
My wife is vegetarian she does most ( read all) of the cooking, I will basically eat anything. She has a good theory that if you can catch it and are willing to kill and prepare it you should eat it. She could not kill an animal for food, I would be quite happy to (I might not make a very good job of it- but there you go) we have and have had a lot of pets - dogs cats mice degus fish rabbits ducks frogs gekos to list a few- all of which I would ( in theory) be quite happy to eat ,she has much more of an emotional attachement.
She does however cook meat for me - and does cracking job of it too - CAN we eat meat, yes. Do we NEED to eat meat, no. Do YOU WANT to eat meat, I do. I also want to eat fruit and veg...
Anyway it is late - I'm rambling (possibly a little drunk) playing with a new mini, tablet thing. Think I'll call it quits an go to sleep good night all.
She does however cook meat for me - and does cracking job of it too
- CAN we eat meat, yes. Do we NEED to eat meat, no. Do YOU WANT to eat meat, I do. I also want to eat fruit and veg...Anyway it is late - I'm rambling (possibly a little drunk) playing with a new mini, tablet thing. Think I'll call it quits an go to sleep
good night all.
Pfft a good % of the country is classed as obese, because we eat too many carbs... potato, bread, pasta, rice, sugar even. All crop grown..... somewhere. Protein is what the body uses to repair and rebuild itself. Carbs is where the energy comes from which produces most body fat. Body fats is what causes heart disease, not protein.
a good % of the country is classed as obese, because we eat too many carbs... potato, bread, pasta, rice, sugar even. All crop grown..... somewhere. Protein is what the body uses to repair and rebuild itself. Carbs is where the energy comes from which produces most body fat. Body fats is what causes heart disease, not protein.
I seem to remember documentaries showing gorillas actively hunting and killing monkeys for food within the last few years.
A better comparison to us though might be chimps which also eat meat (albeit mostly bugs and grubs)
