Giant Fish Farming Cages In The Gulf Of Mexico ???

B&BJ, I became a vegetarian 25 years ago, then vegan, after seeing PETA videos of the cruel and inhumane way we raise our "food".  Animals are NOT meat machines, but people seem to think they are.  I'm sure you heard of the employees at the pig slaughterhouse that have come down with a mysterious illness, because they worked in the area that blew the pigs brains out of their heads, to satisfy the tastebuds of the few people in this country that still eat pig brains.  They said they processed 1100 pig heads per day, so thats 1100 pigs killed for food, per day, in only one slaughterhouse in this country.  The total number is  unfathomable.  Add to that the thousands of cattle and millions of chickens slaughtered each day, in this country alone, and the number is staggering and beyone my comprehension.  Theres a lot to eat out there that doesn't come from animals.  It not only benefits your health to change, but the health of the animals.  As the demand declines, so will the supply.

This is a topic of interest to me. I prefer not to eat animals and live a vegan life. It is easy for me but I don't want to push my views on other people (my family) who see nothing wrong with eating meat.  It continues to be a dilemma. I believe education about the way our meat is grown & harvested would make vegetarians out of most of us.

That's why I'm a vegetarian!  I can't imagine participating in such cruelty.  Anyway, it's too bad more people don't think about how the choices they make every day affect the world.  It's a hard one, because people just don't really want to hear about it.  Or they dismiss you as a "crazy hippie" & discount anything you say. 

Chris, I think people still eat meat because of several reasons.  They don't know how to cook without it, they haven't been enlightened and hey when we call dead animals on a bun, beef, pork, poultry, it doesn't sound bad.  How bout baby cow, infant pig, caged up chickens?  I think if people thought in those terms about what they are eating they just might change their minds.  Oh wait, they do eat "baby back ribs" don't they, without blinking an eye?

Personally I am thankful my enlightenment came many years ago.  It has helped my health and the health of the planet such as it is.

I like to call it "rotting carcass" myself.  But, maybe that's just me : )

Yeah Chris, if we could get the advertisers to call it what it is, how many people do you think would eat meat? :-)

B&BJ, what will it take to enlighten people?  Maybe we should invite all our meat eating friends and family over, tie them up and make them watch the videos!

I eat meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products. I guess I'm the minority here. Fish farming doesn't bother me. They are cold-blooded animals. I don't think they have "feelings" about this anyway.

But I am very concerned about how we raise our farm animals. Sanitation, inhumane conditions, and additives are very important issues. As an older man I am particularly concerned about adding female hormones to animalfeed to "fatten" them up because this leads to prostate problems in men.

I only eat "organic" beef from Harris Ranch.

Bill Roberts

BTW which one of you posts? It would be nice to be able to address you directly.

Bill - It's not only the fish that are impacted by this, it's the environment and also the local fishermen... being put out of work.  That's a problem as well.

Female hormones & steroids are in our meat & dairy, which may be why kids are starting puberty earlier.  Not sure.  Also, vegetarian men cut their risk of prostate cancer by 50%. 

I eat dairy too, even though I feel like I shouldn't.  But I try to always buy organic, and definitely eggs that say cage free & organic.

First, fish farming is harmful to the wild sea creatures in the area.  There is a large salmon farm in Clayoquot Sound (West side of Vancouver Island).  The salmon farmed there are Atlantic Salmon.  They carry diseases that Pacific Salmon have never had.  The concentration of feed and feces in this area causes a huge amount of polution.  Escaped salmon breed with the wild salmon and degrade their quality. Ultimately, the wild runs suffer.

As for meat, there is a growing number of humane organic meat farmers in the United States.  With a little research, one can be a meat eater and not support the meat factory process.  If you eat eggs, it is important to know where they come from (most commercial egg producers use tightly crammed cages with twenty four hour light to keep the hens producing.  Egg production is based on the number of hours of daylight.  Natural hens production falls off dramatically during the short day winter months).  Buy only eggs that are certified "Humane" and organic; and if they are fed flax seed, they are high in Omega-3 fatty acids.  Very healthy.

To summarize, one can be a multivore and still eat both healthy and humanely.

You may have inspired me to start raising my own chickens. I've thought about it for awhile and it might be time. I've got the zoning and space for other things but I just can't go there.

Dena, if you've got the space and inclination, chickens can be fun . . . and you will never go back to store bought eggs.  What you get in the store as fresh are usuall at least two weeks old.  When you see the eggs produce by your own chickens, you will be amazed at the difference; rich, deep yellow yolks and whites that "stand up".  It's only older eggs that have runny whites.  Just be sure your chickens (keep a rooster so you have fertile eggs) have plenty of fresh water all the time.  In my experience, a half dozen hens produced all the eggs needed for a family of two.

Thanks David, you are the first person I've ever had encourage me like that. I appreciate it.