Section » Meat and poultry
Strengthening the “weakest link” in the local meat infrastructure
Friend of the Ethicurean Sam Fromartz looks at a new wave of small slaughterhouses that are appearing in Virginia. He focuses on True & Essential Meats of Harrisonburg, a new partnership of former landscape architect Joe Cloud, his mother, and Joel Salatin (of Polyface Inc., who was profiled in Omnivore's Dilemma). True & Essential, which is
More articles
The “hourglass” problem of getting small-farm Vermont meat to Vermont consumers
"Freedom and Unity" for sustainable meat!: Kudos to reporter Kathryn Flagg and the Addison Independent for their two-part series on slaughterhouses in Vermont. Part II looks at the growing market for local meats, the challenges facing small meat producers, and the ways farmers are trying to make meat
Bill and Nicolette Hahn Niman on why they mourn a dead cow
All about Eve: Moving piece by sustainable meat's power couple on why they cried when they found the daughter of one of their favorite cows unexpectedly dead. "After all, this cow was being raised for meat. How could we feel a genuine attachment for her?" they ask. "We can only say that we did. And that
Pork prevention: What’s behind the NPPC bailout, or how the government keeps filling up Big Meat’s trough
During the Iowa flood disaster in the summer of 2008, I proposed that there are winners and losers in moments of human tragedy — those who pay the costs of dealing with an unsavory situation, and those who are on the receiving end
Mobile meat processing coming to Puget Sound
Slaughter, Airstream-style: Livestock producers in Washington's Puget Sound region are pinning their hopes on a 45-foot mobile meat processing unit that will travel from farm to farm, eliminating the logistical nightmares (including a several-hour drive) associated with the few mega-slaughterhouses still
Family farmers: No NAIS in our name
NPPC doesn't speak for me: Rhonda Perry, a Missouri farmer and director of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center, is tired of Big Meat purporting to represent her interests in Washington. NAIS, a controversial animal tracking program [that we've covered numerous
Senate basically kind of halves funding for National Animal ID
Say it again, with feeling: Senators John Tester (D-MT) and Mike Enzi (R-WY) flexed some legislative and moral muscle earlier this week with an amendment to the agriculture spending bill that halves funding for the USDA's controversial National Animal Identification System (NAIS). The amended bill
House debates whether we should sacrifice human antibiotics for meat industry gain
Sharfstein socks one to Big Meat: In a hearing held today in the House Rules Committee, Deputy FDA Commissioner Josh Sharfstein threw the administration's weight behind a ban on feeding antibiotics meant for humans to healthy animals. The practice is common on industrial livestock operations, where low
Houston Press tells, shows where fajita beef comes from
Before hipsters discovered butchery class: Houston Press reporter Robb Walsh has a long but fascinating feature on his recent adventures in butchery, which "all started with a meat mystery — call it the case of the disappearing skirt." Walsh was developing fajita recipes for a grilling cookbook but
The lost art of butchery moves to YouTube
Cowpooling director: Very nice piece by friend o'Ethicurean Tamar Adler on meeting a Le Grand, CA, butcher who processes mostly beef and lamb for the people who raised them or their customers. Thankfully, Bill McCann has begun to preserve his dying skills on digital video for the Inertent age. (Civil
Time to get tray serious: Get involved with a Child Nutrition Act campaign now
School’s out for the summer, but there’s a food fight going on in the cafeteria. In Washington, Congress is turning up the heat on the policies that determine what 30 million children will eat once the lunch
USDA hearings on NAIS
Will they really listen? The Rural Blog reminds us that the USDA is holding "listening sessions" about the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). The last two will be in Storrs, Connecticut on May 27 and Loveland, Colorado on June 1 (location information and a link to the NAIS comment page at
Digest - News: Smithfield’s flu, organic for the masses, Vilsack reserves judgment
They're not confining everything, apparently: MSM's all over the swine flu (SJ Merc) and U.S. hog prices are tanking (Reuters), but few are talking
Digest - Features and blogs: Free-range response, literary seasonality, the Hamburg wish list
Fighting the Averyian Flu: Researchers at Johns Hopkins University look a little deeper at the NYT pork op-ed and find that the study mentioned was funded by the National Pork Board, which represents conventional producers, and that the Trichinosis "positive" pigs tested seropositive, meaning they have
Digest - Commentary & blogs: Bittman busted for unconscious eating
Snap!-per: Tom Philpott chides Mark Bittman, aka The Minimalist and author of "Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating," for recommending red snapper—one of the most endangered species in U.S. waters. "I believe that influental food writers, especially ones concerned with conscious eating, need to
