My husband and I just had a discussion which ended with him sighing and rolling his eyes.
Before that, it went like this:
Me: Hmm…
Him: What?
Me: Dairy. Factory farms.
Him: So?
Me: Why do I not eat meat?
Cue sigh and rolling of eyes.
If you’re still confused, you probably didn’t watch ABC’s Nightline on Tuesday. Actually, I didn’t either, but some of the blogs I follow are all a-buzz about it. There was a segment exposing the horrible conditions that cows endure on dairy farms. You can watch the segment or read about it on Change.org or Huffington Post.
Another moral dilemma. Caring about what I put into my body certainly is a lot of work. I drastically cut my meat consumption last year primarily because of the dangers of eating meat (bacteria, chronic health conditions) but also because I don’t agree with the practices of the meat industry (cramped quarters, sick animals, antibiotics, crappy feed, etc). I’m not a vegetarian, and I always swore I could never be vegan because I love cheese and yogurt too much. But if conditions on dairy farms aren’t any better than on meat farms, should I be consuming dairy either?
Now, before Brian gets all annoyed about my latest crusade, let’s be real. The chances of me cutting out dairy are slim to none. Nevertheless, its amazing what we don’t know (or choose to ignore) about where our food comes from. Again, education is the only way we’re going to change the opinions of the general American populus and create real change in our food system. Once we’re educated, we can make smarter choices about what we eat. Check out the Eat Well Guide (linked from the HuffPo article) to find out where you can buy local, sustainable, organic food. I know its a lot of work (trust me, I know), but think before you eat!
