What Really Goes Into the Meat You Eat? Get the Inside Info in SixWise's Exclusive Interview with Ex
If you've never heard about the unethical conditions and extreme environmental toll of factory farms or the many unsavory and dangerous additives to mass-produced meats and animal products, then be prepared for a huge wakeup call when you read Ken Midkiff's new book The Meat You Eat: How Corporate Farming Has Endangered America's Food Supply.
The book exposes the appalling practices of agribusiness to show what has really happened to food production in America. Where livestock farming was once driven by quality-driven, family-owned farms, it's now controlled by big businesses that are "concerned with volume, efficiency, uniformity and profits above all else." And these practices are not only inhumane-they're ruining our environment and our health.
Below in this exclusive interview, Ken Midkiff expands on important topics like which factory meats are the worst and why Americans aren't aware of the downsides to commercially raised meat, then discusses his motives for writing The Meat You Eat.
Q: In terms of its effects on people's personal health, which of the major commercially produced (versus small-farmed, humanely and organically-raised) meats would you sound the loudest alarm against consuming-beef, pork, poultry or fish? Why?
A: In terms of everything (environment, worker health, safety and benefits, rural economy, animal welfare, etc.) pork is probably the worst, with poultry a close second.
However, all are bad, and we are just now realizing (or recognizing) the problems caused by raising salmon in pens. Beef feedlots have been around a long time and are generally in places where rainfall and polluted runoff are minimal. But, beef feedlots treat living creatures as "units of production," and are unspeakably cruel.
Q: Do you personally eat meat? If no, why not, and if yes, what type and from what sources?
No, I do not. Several years ago I did-but it became too difficult to sort out which was the "good stuff" and which the bad. So it seemed less difficult to just become a vegetarian.
Q: "The Meat You Eat" exposes a lot of information that many in the agribusiness industry would rather keep secret. What types of opposition did you encounter when researching and writing this book?
A: Surprisingly, none. Most of the research into the agribusiness industry was done via the Internet; most of my contacts were folks engaged in sustainable agriculture.
Q: What was your motivation for writing this book? To get the word out from a health perspective, environmental perspective, ethical perspective, a combination of the three ... ?
A: There were three motivations, but all are related:
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I grew up on a sustainable farm. We had everything from chickens to goats, and we raised grain crops, some portion of which was fed to the animals.
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In the course of my work with the Sierra Club, I heard tales of woe regarding the non-environmental impacts of agribusiness.
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An article in the New York Times relayed that most (maybe all) teenagers in the New York City area stated that their foods came from "the grocery store."
My book was written to draw a connecting line between what is on the plate and how the animal that produced the food (meat, milk or eggs) was raised.
Q: Are you aware of any personal stories in which people's health was directly affected by eating commercially produced meats and fish?
A: Yes. From ineffectiveness of antibiotics to illness caused by bacteria-laden meats, I personally know folks whose health has suffered.
Q: Why do you think agribusiness has been able to "pull the wool" over so many Americans' eyes when it comes to the quality of our meat? Why is it that most Americans don't associate the meat in supermarkets with the diseased and often unfit-to-eat animals raised in factory farms?
A: PR types who work for agribusiness have become quite skilled at portraying agribusiness operations as "farms." The supermarket packages or cartons of meat, milk and eggs don't portray the reality of concentrated animal feeding operations. Instead, there are photos (or cartoons) of cows standing under a shade tree in green grass, a rooster crowing on a fence or salmon leaping in a pristine stream. Most people don't look beyond those happy pictures.
Q: At what point in history did farming begin to switch from the small, local farmer to the agribusiness conglomerates of today?
A: It has been rather gradual ... but this trend began after WWII, when two people rose to prominence: Earl "Get Big or Get Out" Butz and John Tyson, who recognized that he could make more money by having other people raise his chickens. Chickens were first (broilers and egg-layers) and pork followed.
Dairy operations are getting bigger, thanks to government subsidies that promote them, and beef is about the same. Only within the past decade has salmon "farming" become economically viable.
Q: What advice do you have for families looking to eat healthier meats and fish, but who don't have access to organic sources either because of location or economic reasons?
A: It takes a bit of looking, but there are sources of organic or sustainable foods in almost every community. In the larger towns, such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City, Denver and Miami, it is relatively easy to make contact with CSA's (community-supported agriculture). In smaller towns across the country, farmers' markets are proliferating.
Q: What was the most shocking bit of information you uncovered while writing "The Meat You Eat"?
A: The dehumanization of slaughterhouse workers. Because of the somewhat shocking nature of killing animals in vast quantities, I did not devote much attention to this issue. There is no "good" way to kill chickens, cows or pigs-some ways may be better than others, but in the end, a living creature ends up dead.
Q: Where do you see the future of our food supply heading? Is the future bright or dim in your perspective?
A: It is likely there will continue to be a market for meat, milk and eggs produced in mass quantities by agribusiness-the products are cheap and marketing techniques are designed to entice those who, for various reasons, must eat cheap. At the same time, there is a rapidly growing demand for quality, which can only be accomplished by small growers and producers.
So I see a flat line for the products of agribusiness and a growing market for sustainably produced foods. The latter is growing by about 20 percent per year-the former is not growing at all.
Q: If you could give our readers one bit of advice about consuming meat and fish, something they could do today, that would benefit not only their health but also the state of our food industry, what would it be?
Buy locally from someone you know personally. Eating is an agricultural act, so support those who are doing it right.
Q: Do you have plans to write another book?
Yes. The subject will be similar and is derived from my travels around the country. We are running out of water. So, the topic of my next book will be: Water: Depletion, Over-Appropriation and Privatization.
In The Meat You Eat, it is quite apparent that Ken Midkiff has done extensive homework on the topic (and, as he is the Sierra Club's Clean Water Campaign Director, has access to some "insider" facts), as this book is not a "rant" but instead is supported throughout by researched insights. No matter what your personal motivations are-health, environmental, ethical-SixWise.com urges everyone to take the time to read The Meat You Eat. It's a quick read, an important read, and one that can help lead to a positive transformation in both a big-picture and personal sense.
"We have given up to the agribusiness corporations a crucial part of our responsibility as human beings and we must now think of ways to take it back."
--Wendell Berry, from the Foreword
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