Is Withholding Eggs for Vegetarians Reasons Ethical?

Generally, public leaders have the best interest of their people in mind. Especially when it comes to food.


Indian children eat a school meal
Photo courtesy PBS News Hour

For example, the current Obama administration has been taking steps to more heavily monitor and control antibiotic use in livestock in the United States. As misplaced as this guidance is, because all meat is antibiotic-free due to strict adherence to withdrawal times and judicious use by farmers and ranchers, it’s still a conscious effort by public leaders to do what they believe is best for the nation’s citizens. I highly doubt that any U.S. President would deny healthful food to a malnourished population. That’s ludicrous, right?!

Well, apparently that thought process is not taking place in India. The Chief Minister of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, recently shot down a proposal to serve eggs in government run daycare centers. Why, you may ask?

The minister, whose name is Shivraj Chouhan, is a staunch vegetarian and lives in the state of Madhya Pradesh, which is mostly vegetarian along with and a few other Indian states. That’s fine – to each their own. However, the poorest – and most malnourished – Indians are generally not vegetarian. They would absolutely eat nutritious eggs if they could afford them.

If you’re thinking this is a trivial matter, you’re wrong. India’s free school lunch program, including the government-run daycare, reaches 120+ million Indian children. Providing these children with eggs could literally save their lives. In fact, when eggs are served in the free school lunch program and daycares, attendance actually increases! Those children aren’t getting enough sustenance at home but they can get it at school – double positive because then they are actually going to school.

Remember that eggs are an extremely good source of protein and nutrients. A large egg has about 80 calories but packs a big ole protein punch of 6 grams. Additionally, eggs are a good source of Vitamin D and Vitamin B-12. For a malnourished child, those nutrients are invaluable.

It all boils down to doing what is right, not what you want and unfortunately for some, those things don’t always align. I think its best summed up with this quote from Dipa Sinha, an economist at the Center for Equity Studies, when asked about the state of malnourished children and solving that problem:

“Every third Indian child is malnourished. The best interest of the child should be driving policy. I think this ban on eggs is a big setback.”

What do you think? Should politicians' personal beliefs be a reason to deny nutrition to children?

Until next time,

~ Buzzard ~

To read more about this issue, read this NPR piece.

This littly piggy went to market...

A friend of mine sent me this picture and I thought it was a wonderful representation of all the products animals provide for us. It also reinforces my belief that it is very difficult to live a truly vegan lifestyle. I didn't know a couple of these on the list!

My best,

Tera

Why Vegetarians are Crazy

You didn't really think I was writing a one-sided post about why a rural Kansas, farmer's daughter thinks vegetarians are crazy, did you? Well, they aren't and I hope that you clicked on this post for more than just the catchy title, because if you'll stick around you might even learn something new about consumer choices. 

I am always challenging myself to learn the opinions from people on what I used to consider, "the other side". It is a way to broaden my view on certain topics and adjust my opinions accordingly. Sometimes I find out that there really aren't sides at all...

That is exactly what happened when I had a conversation with a vegetarian. She is a good friend of mine and someone I have learned a great deal from without even talking about our diets. I wanted to start with a background and if you come back soon, you'll get to hear more from my vegetarian friend!

A consumer is a broad label used for people or households that utilize goods or services generated within the economy. 

Within this broad category of consumers, people identify with different choice groups, oftentimes labeled with a name, based on the type and kinds of goods or services they consume.

Food consumers are no different and the American Dietetic Association identifies four types within the vegetarian lifestyle:

• Strict vegetarian or vegan: A vegetarian diet that excludes all animal products such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk, cheese and other dairy products
• Lactovegetarian: A vegetarian diet that excludes meat, poultry, fish and eggs but includes dairy products
• Lacto-ovovegetarian: A vegetarian diet that excludes meat, poultry and fish but includes eggs and dairy products. Most vegetarians in the United States fall into this category.
• Flexitarian: A semi-vegetarian diet with a focus on vegetarian food with occasional meat consumption. 

That's a lot more complicated than I ever dreamed! There is an estimated 2.5% of US population who fall into one of these four consumer groups. No matter if you find yourself falling into one of these groups or not, we all have one thing in common - we make choices about our food at the grocery store or farmer's market everyday. 

Stay tuned to see how my conversation went with my vegetarian friend. 

Kill it, Cook it, Eat it

Sounds pretty gruesome doesn't it? Actually, I'm quite a fan of this show featured on BBC that started in 2007. This show takes a group of 6 participants through the process of how livestock are raised in the UK, slaughtering and processing the carcass and eventually eating the resulting product. Designed similar to a reality show format, this show is not simply a tutorial of how to butcher animals, but brings together participants from a wide array of backgrounds and everybody gets their hands dirty. Participants are shown everything from how to castrate baby pigs and deliver vaccines to properly stunning and exsanguinating the animal to maintain the integrity of the meat. After slaughter, trained butchers take participants through the process of how the carcass is utilized for a variety of meat products.

In the 2011 season, the cast includes both vegetarians and meat-eaters, including those who were raised on the farm and urban socialites. Throughout each episode, there is dialogue between the participants about how animals are housed, slaughtered and consumed and their personal opinions about each step in the process.

Designed to show viewers the real process from pasture to plate, Kill it, Cook it, Eat it does a masterful job of providing an unbiased view of livestock production and the slaughter and butchering process. Whether you are an avid meat-eater, cautious skeptic, or a life-long vegetarian, this show has appeal for everyone so be sure to check it out!

Oprah Went Vegan for 1 Week - supposedly...

Have you heard the hype? The 'Oprah went vegan' hype, that is.  Earlier today, Oprah hosted Michael Pollan and Kathy Freston as she revealed the results of her 1-Week Vegan challenge. The challenge consisted of Oprah, and 378 of her associates, living vegan for a whole week. But did they really achieve their goal?

Sure, they didn't eat any meat or dairy products. But did they remove the hundreds of other animal products from their lives as well?  I have my doubts. Why? Well, in cattle, everything from the carcass is used. No part of the animal is wasted. For further explanation take a look at this picture.

I have a feeling that Oprah didn't give up cosmetics (udder), shampoo or conditioner (hooves/horns), glass (bones), candles or perfume (both from fat). The absolute truth is that we need animal products to live our everyday lives.

Also during this segment, viewers got to see Lisa Ling, Oprah journalist, take a tour of a Cargill meat plant. My props go out to Cargill for opening their doors to skeptists.  As expected, the plant treated the animals humanely and the meat was processed and packed safely and without mistake. Cargill's actions were a great example of transparency and should make agriculture very proud.

Bottom line - Eating meat is not evil. That is a direct quote from Michael Pollan (who is NOT by the way a 'food expert') but he hit the nail square on the head. Exercise, in partnership with a balanced diet full of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy AND meat, is the best way to experience a healthy lifestyle. The Oprah segment had some positive effects - it got people to thinking and talking about their food choices and options. Informed consumers are not a bad outcome.  

If you are interested in learning more about humane farm animal welfare - sign in to Twitter tonight at 7 pm CST and participate in #agchat. Several FFT members will be participating, as well as farmers and ranchers from around the nation.

Until next time,

~ Buzzard ~