I officially became a vegetarian on August 31, 2009. I remember the day uncannily well: it was a Sunday afternoon, during the summer before I started college. I went out to an American restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed a cheeseburger: a massive, dripping, slab of fleshy goodness.
After this calorically high but emotionally rewarding “last supper,” I confidently bid farewell to meat.
Nothing dramatic happened to compel me to eliminate my meat consumption. I didn’t leave the restaurant and then walk into a slaughterhouse; the grotesque images driving me to vegeterianism. I didn’t find a dismembered body part in my meat. I didn’t adopt a pet cow named Bessie whose piercing, bovine eyes guilted me out of some of my favorite foods.
Instead, thanks to my brother, some friends, a movie and a book, I made an informed choice to fight injustice through my choice of diet.
I was never motivated by the issue of eating animals, easily capable of disassociating in my head a star-shaped chicken nugget from a cute little chick. Instead, I was made aware of many of the social and political implications of supporting the meat industry and decided I didn’t want to contribute to them any longer.
In fact, whether or not you are moved by animal rights, human rights are at stake on many factory farms. Industrial farms and slaughterhouses are devastatingly dangerous for their employees, as well as needlessly cruel to their animals. According to sustainabletable.org, laborers on large industrial farms are exposed to dangerous gases produced by decomposing manure, including hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide and methane. Up to 70 percent of these workers will develop acute bronchitis each year. Immigrant worker rights are also compromised, as industries frequently recruit low-wage workers outside the United States to make profit, allowing the illegal employees to their rights to safe and fair working conditions.
Additionally, the environmental impact of the meat industry is astounding. Greenhouse gas emissions are significantly greater in the meat industry than for other food production: producing half a pound of hamburger patty the size of two decks of cards releases as much greenhouse gas as driving a 3,000-pound car nearly 10 miles, according to the Scientific American.
There is also a significant amount of waste in the process of meat production – so much so that if we dedicated prime farmland to growing food for humans instead of biofuels or food for animals to be slaughtered, we could make 50 percent more food: enough to significantly lessen the global food crisis, according to an article in The New Nation.
It’s easy to say that one person refraining from meat won’t make a difference. It’s also easy to point to the issues associated with the clothing or oil industries, along with plenty of other facets of society, and ask “why meat?” Yet, as the movie Food Inc puts it, each of us casts a vote for meat every time we consume it, supporting its injustices with each bite. Abstaining from meat has been by far the easiest and most rewarding way I’ve made a difference in society on a daily basis by casting my vote for the fair treatment of humans and animals on an individual and global scale.
My life without meat has been a much fuller one. Here are some people-loving, cow-loving, pig-loving, chicken-loving things that I’m grateful for:
1. Blind faith cafe
This restaurant located near the intersection of Dempster and Chicago is an incredible vegetarian restaurant within walking distance, offering plenty of delectable options with and without meat substitutes. If you’re looking for a place downtown, the Chicago Diner provide the best meatless, greasy, diner-style food in Chicago.
2. Facon
If you’re willing to try something more out of the box, Morningstar Farm’s “Bacon Strips” are the richest at-home meat substitute option I’ve had. Infused with all of the smokey flavor that makes bacon wonderful without the greasy animal fat, it’s a great addition to your diet.
3. NuCuisine’s vegan and vegetarian selections
NU was voted the number one vegan-friendly campus in the country by PETA in 2007 and 2010. Think about taking advantage of the variety of delicious meat-free options offered here
4. Food, Inc.
This movie was the first thing that got me thinking about my vote as a food consumer in our society, it’s a really comprehensive guide to the various issues related to the food industry at large.
5. Making a difference
Nothing feels better than making an impact. Do some research and think about cutting back or cutting out meat from your life.
Maeve Wall is a Weinberg junior. She can be reached at [email protected]
