Thoughts on BBC Food programme about meat

I thought the Food Programme with Sheila Dillon and Sir Paul McCartney made some very interesting points about meat. I knew about Linda McCartney’s wacky ‘vege’ meals, including the tofu turkey, but had never heard of Sir Paul’s ‘Meat free Monday’ campaign to encourage us to eat less meat.

Perhaps after the horse burger incident we should think again.

There is no doubt that most people eat far too much meat. China’s levels doubled between 1990 and 2002, increasing from 3.6kg per person in 1961, to 52.4kg in 2002 (half of the world’s pork is now consumed in China). Danes however are the biggest meat eaters with a shocking 145.9kg per person in 2002.

Much of the blame is placed on low prices and so many meat based fast food outlets. So will consumption rise further?

The trouble is we have reached a level which is not sustainable and thoroughly irresponsible.

Not only to our health, and to animal welfare, but perhaps more important, in years to come, very irresponsible when half the world’s population living on under £2 a day will starve because billions on tonnes of grain will be fed to factory farmed meat producing animals.

In a recent blog we included a quote from Colin Tudge stating; That by 2050, on present trends, the world’s livestock will consume enough to feed four billion people.’

Unfortunately world governments are doing nothing about this problem hoping that rising grain prices will make meat more expensive and so reduce consumption. Unfortunately higher feed prices are causing even more intensive factory farming and more starvation.

So what should we do? For our health and our conscience we should;
1. Avoid supermarkets and buy meat from sustainable producers, grass fed beef, free range pork and chicken.
2. Eat less meat, (the higher price for ‘free range’ may help)
3. Tell your friends about meat and forward this blog.

As always your comments are welcome below.