To ask you to think twice about eating chicken regularly

[Tigofigo]

...it's just not sustainable for us to consume as much as we do.

Intensive chicken farming is polluting and destroying our rivers and also potentially causing breathing difficulties and lung issues in those who live near farms spraying chicken / other animal manure as fertilizer.

Really worrying too, at a time when govt are ripping up EU regs on environmental laws that will further destroy our rivers and the animals, plants and people that rely on them (along with the shit already pumped into them...).

www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/sep/25/chicken-farm-giant-linked-to-river-wye-decline-was-sued-over-water-blight-in-us

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jan/14/muck-spreading-could-be-banned-to-reduce-air-pollution

inews.co.uk/news/brexit-bonfire-environment-regulations-otters-dolphins-birds-conservationists-1875799

They work in factory farms and I have no problem with that!

Regardless of what you want to throw at me I seen them both working from 7am to 11/12pm keeping those animals alive during the heatwave and getting up at 7am to do it all again

I am not asking anyone to 'be alright with it' just shut the fuck up shoving your opinions on to others. its tiring tbh.

I haven't read the whole thread but a poster commented earlier that these threads alienate people by being pushy and emotive. I don't think the OP was either of those things, it asked people politely to consider how often they do a particular thing and gave facts and sources to back up the argument. This stance was clarified in further posts. Then, as usual, certain posters jumped in to say "You can't tell me what to do! I don't give a f!!!" (I'm not talking about the people who put forward nuanced points about dealing with intolerances or the CoL, by the way.) None of the posts in support of the OP have been belligerent in tone. Can't say the same for the opposing side. Can only speak for myself but it feels rather disingenuous.

Lots of people have responded that veggie & vegan food sources are also not carbon footprint-free, as if this is some kind of "gotcha!" moment. I find it hard to believe that these people are engaging in good faith. That's a seriously low level of critical thinking, if so.

On supplements - I have to take iron supplement in order not to be anaemic, but I also did when I was still eating meat (which I haven't done for 3 years now). For many women who have regular periods, this is the only way they will ever be able to maintain their iron at an adequate level. Similarly, vitamin D supplements are essential for people living on the UK in autumn and winter, however complete their diet.

I could take cooking lessons from a Michelin starred chef but it's not going to stop the pain or dashes to the loo!

Agree. Lamb is my favourite meat, and DH's, and we know how to cook it well in a variety of ways. Unfortunately it is so expensive that we only have it twice a year - a leg at Easter, and a shepherd's pie on DH's birthday. It's just too much more expensive than chicken/casserole beef/pork or turkey mince to justify having it more often for normal family meals. We're not in poverty, but we do have to be careful. Regular fresh lamb is out of our price range.

Where I’m from we used to pick out the very chicken that would get slaughtered for us 😆

It says a lot about how people assume and need there to be someone or something in charge. I'm sure that's not what you meant, but you even writing this is a sign of the underlying thinking

I mean the eco cult has a doomsday mentality just like religion does. But the IPCC has outlined no such doomsday scenario. But the eco zealots seem to want it.

We won't be "in trouble" if unending materialism and mass production consume the planet, if increasingly poor animal conditions result in antibiotic resistant bacteria, if climate changes causes flood and drought and spread of tropical diseases, and pollutions ebbs away at previously safe resources

Keyword: if. The models are uncertain on these points.

But we will have to live with the consequences of that. There is no one "in charge" to save us from ourselves

Never has been

10 weeks? What a load of rubbish

I'm perfectly able to cook it thanks very much, trouble is there is nowhere to warm it up when I'm working. We don't all have access to microwaves at work. Quite frankly I'd rather not eat beans and lentils as it appears to result in some people being quite nasty.

Lambs are usually an average of 6 months when slaughtered. I used to buy half a lamb from a farmer locally here, not a 'farm' as such, just a very small, small holding and its unusual for it to be much younger or older.

😅😅

oec.world/en/profile/bilateral-product/poultry-meat/reporter/gbr?redirect=true#:~:text=Imports%20In%202020%2C%20United%20Kingdom,imported%20product%20in%20United%20Kingdom.

We import a lot of chicken from some surprising countries.

The people that I know that are vegan and environmentalists do tend to be woke. And I don’t understand why that is an insult. They tend to be intelligent and educated and put in an effort to minimise their negative impact on the world and living beings. Not perfect, but they try. And it isn’t a problem. Wish everyone was woke.

Amongst them are a big number of scientists, doctors, teachers and so on.

I ate meat until I knew better. I could have not bothered to look into it, but I did and now I know better. The same with other stuff I do and don’t do. I’m not perfect, but I try and I I listen and research and use logic. And I can make a lot of changes in my life without it affecting me badly and in some cases it benefits me. Maybe the reason why I sailed through menopause without a single symptom is because of my diet? Also may be the reason I am never ill.

There is no such thing as humane killing. No living being wants to be killed. Or separated from their young. Or be incarcerated. Or have their breasts pumped for years. Or live in crowded metal boxes with urine burns in their joints. Or ground alive like day old chicks. Or loads of other awful things.

And the environmental costs are incredibly huge. Land razed to grow soy for feeding cattle at a rate of noughts. All the pesticide used to grow plants to feed this animals seeping into our waterways, killing all sorts of lives. The methane gas from animal farts and poos. Water use etc.

Would you like to point out where I have said I eat meat everyday? I'll help you out....I haven't. I just said that cold beans and lentils were not for me.

All veganism does is avoid slaughtering animals for food.
It does nothing to tackle the problem of agribusiness, monocrops, pesticide use, irrigation, or the carbon footprint of imported foods. there are people who have made an informed decision to eat locally grown, sustainable foods instead of imports and that does not make us less well informed.

When they can make substitutes that taste absolutely the same and have really high protein counts with the same nutrition. I will make the switch to vegan.

You need to feed these animals during their lives. Many environmentalists are vegan solely because of the environmental impact.

The people that I know that are vegan and environmentalists do tend to be woke. And I don’t understand why that is an insult.

Depends on whether you've actually looked at the misogynistic imagery and language used to promote veganism, really.

Mouldy mammary secretions, pus and blood in milk, how disgusting it is to consider mammalian substances as food
Naked, young (very young) women spreadeagled and sometimes covered in fake blood in adverts
Lots of reference to rape and sexual violence linking to those images of naked young women

Stuff like that.

Please show me which supermarket sells organic chickens for £3/4? A completely unequal comparison there.
I pay between £12- 15 for an organic chicken once a month and I’m lucky to get two days out of it. 1main meal? some bits for a veggie heavy fajitas and then bones for soup.
Would rather do without than buy and eat a battery hen, the same as battery y eggs

Im glad someone bought this up. It has utterly turned me off for years of any arguments made.

Basic sexual aggression against women

I just think it’s baffling that in the face of evidence about how damaging animal agriculture is to the environment your input is “but I don’t like cold lentils”.

@ZeroFuchsGiven

I am genuinely not trying to start an argument by asking this, I am just interested.

You say both your children work in factory farms, but also that you had chickens that you named and kept as 'pets' before eating. By having some chickens at home to raise and eat, does that mean you would choose that over factory farmed chickens (where I think you said your daughter worked?).

I am just curious if you and your children find the idea of factory farming even the smallest bit sad or whether you are completely de-sensitised to it now.

Thats completely disingenuous. That poster replied to your suggestion about lunch ideas.

Thats all, they made no wider comment on animal agriculture in that post.

Oh come on, it’s so clear that their comment was a derogatory one about a vegan diet.

It’s just such a typical “ew I don’t want to eat beans!!!” comment that people give all the time and that is used to shut down any suggestions of a plant based diet. Apologies if that’s not what the commenter meant, but it seemed that way to me.

I eat a lot of lentils and beans and I never eat them cold. i dont eat bean salads or lentil dishes cold.

Perhaps consider how defensive you are.

She wasnt shutting down discussion, she simply explained there isnt a way for her to eat those particular ingredients at lunch in a way she would like.

People can eat what they want, I don't particularly like chicken or beans and lentils so I don't eat them much, I wouldn't expect randoms on MN to tell me what to eat though .