I would honestly like to know.




And that's fair enough. The 6 oz servings actually recommended by health institutions is much healthier than the 10z sirloins people gorge on. I definitely agree with you there. But meat on its own is not that bad. And we are no more akin to herbivores than we are to carnivores. Almost all herbivores have mechanisms to breakdown plant fibers that humans cannot. We have very little microbial digestion in our gut. The human gut is much closer to a carnivore gut than it is to a herbivore gut in pretty much every fashion (Except length of gut).



That's not a very good measure, really. The benefit of meat is not in it's caloric value, but in it's content of other nutrients. So to compare based on calories does no respect to the product. Furthermore, plant products require petroleum as well. And do you think your "organic" farmers out out there hand plowing and using Oxen? They're using petroleum too, and probably just as much when it comes to planting, harvesting and processing (After you adjust to scale, anyways).



Okay, let me clear somethings up for you. If a rancher is doing his job properly, the cattle are NOT fed a 100% grain diet. Yes, it is high in grains, but it is ALSO high in fiber. Because a sick cow is a useless cow. No, it is not the most "natural", but in order to meat the demands of the customers, it is what is done. You do not get quality marbling without fat deposits, which requires more energy than grass alone can provide. Regardless, cattle are perfectly able to eat grains. If a rancher is doing his job and balancing his diets optimally for his cattle, there is plenty of fiber in the cow's diet to offset these grains. And who in the WORLD told you the pH of a cow's stomach is 7? That is 100% untrue. Optimal rumen pH is slightly acidic at around 6.

As for that "mucousy film" and stomach expansion, that is called bloat. For one, I'd like to point out that bloat has plagued cattle since they were domesticated...well before the dawn dawn of industrialized cattle production. For another, bloat is not associated with high carbohydrates alone. It was once thought to, but that is no longer the primary theory amongst animal scientists. Both alfalfa bloat (which I'm sure you know is a legume PASTURE) and feedlot bloat are thought to be more associated with small PARTICLES of easily digestible carbohydrates and proteins as well. So, for example, feeding whole corn is much less likely to cause bloat as feed lot corn. Those two bloats are called "frothy" bloat. There is another kind of bloat called "Free gas" bloat, but that is not associated with feed itself in the slightest. It is more associated with a sudden change in environment or feed, obstruction or nerve damage. Here is a good bit on bloat. http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex6769

And in any case, grass fed beef is NOT sustainable. In order to provide the quantity of meat demanded, ranchers would be forced to stock too many cattle per acre, and as such, would overgraze the pasture land. And do you think these cattle will just stop shitting? Instead, this same quantity of shit will be spread all over a tightly packed overgrazed piece of "pasture" (which over time will more resemble a dry lot anyways). Grass fed beef works for here and there and to supply the demand for grass fed beef...but it cannot meet the demands of the entire beef industry.

As for antibiotics, it is not practice to put antibiotics in a healthy cow's diet. There is definitely use of PRObiotics, but even you eat those (if you eat yogurt, anyways). And in any case, the antibiotics fed to cows aren't going to affect you anyways. If the antibiotics affected you in anyway, the FDA would not permit them to be used in livestock animals. There is incredibly tight regulation on this, I assure you. They may make it more difficult for the rancher to keep his cows healthy, this is true, but as I've previously stated, an unhealthy cow is an unprofitable cow. There has been huge movement away from feeding antibiotics to healthy cattle in the past years. I'd make sure your sources were up to date...and that they were using relevant data.



As far as I know, there is no indication that H1N1 had anything to do with livestock production, but I admit I am not well versed on the subject. As for BSE, yes, the industry made a mistake...and rectified it . To shake your finger at the industry now is unfair to the progress they are making. and that is OLD news. Cattle haven't been fed their own species for years. And it's not like chicken meat is just tossed to the cows. It is ground bone meal, mostly, some meat, because it is cheaper to supplement calcium and protein in one step this way. Supplementing enables the cattle to lead healthier lives .



I'm saying you only know half the story and don't know much about the industry beyond what the other side has to say. And I'm also saying that they are quite likely feeding out inaccurate and/or outdated information in order to make their point. There have been a lot of changes in the industry in the past few years that a lot of people seem inclined to ignore.



The misinformation, perhaps. Do some research about what ACTUALLY goes on in the industries, not what its opponents would have you believe. The government pays farmers to not plant on land in order to help sustain the land. Not all fertilizers and pesticides are petroleum based, and as technology develops, fewer and fewer are. GMO corn is only modified against pests and pathogens pertinent to corn. Industrial breeds of corn have also been selected for resistance and yield, but that is no different than what we've done to bulldogs, mules, or Persian cats. The reason that the producers must reseed every year is not because the corn cannot breed, but because it is an annual grass and only grows once a year, and oh, we cut it down and eat it.

As for hormones, I can 100% guarantee you that you can produce any animal food product in the purest method you can. You will always find hormones in it after analysis. Why? Because the animal itself makes hormones. I know, I know, it's a SHOCKER, but those hormones don't magically disappear. While hormones are used sometimes, please keep in mind that everything and I do mean everything that is fed to food animals is approved by both the FDA and the USDA. Regulations are very tight and it is just as hard to get a drug approved for food animal use as it is for human use. The hormones used in dairy or meat production passed these stringent regulations. If you still do not want to consume it, that's fine and I can understand why. But keep in mind that much of the data against it neglects to mention details like "hormones are already there, no matter what is done".

I agree that there are many aspects of conventional production that could stand to be changed. And the industry is constantly evolving, even if its opponents would rather ignore it. There are changes being made every year; new research coming out every day. I've seen PETA spout "facts" that haven't been relevant for over a decade.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to consume "organic, natural" products. I'm also not going to deny that it just might be healthier for people and animals, and it just might be "better". Hell, even if you added up all the factors, yah...organic meats might just come out "ahead". But "the industry" is not the big bad evil you think it is, and organic/grass fed farming cannot meet the quantity of meat demanded. At least, not at this time.

If you have all the pertinent information and still wish to call conventional producers out as pariahs along with us who buy conventionally produced products...fine. But make sure you listen to more than one side and gather all the story. Not just half of it.