The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
What's the beef with beef? According to an article by Tony Burke, Australia's minister for Agriculture, his country is undertaking a major research effort to reduce methane gas emitted by their 120 million sheep, goats and cattle. Why? Because methane gas is 21 times more powerful a greenhouse gas than CO2. About 85 per cent is produced in the digestive processes of livestock, while 15 per cent is created by massive reservoirs used to contain untreated animal waste from feedlots. According to Noam Mohr of Earthsave.org, eliminating meat from our diet would lower greenhouse gases quicker than a shift from fossil fuel burning. "The turnover rate for feedlot farm animals is one to two years. A decrease in meat consumption would result in an immediate decrease in methane gas. The turnover rates for cars and power plants is much slower. Carbon dioxide takes more than 100 years to leave the atmosphere, but methane gas takes just eight years to cycle out." This is a quick, alternative solution for cooling the planet. If the thought of giving up your Sunday roast beef makes you want to burn your cloth bags and join the dark side, consider cutting back on your meat consumption. If you switch to grass-fed beef, pork or sheep, the higher cost may encourage you to eat less. And the meat will be healthier for you as well, according to Dr. David Servan-Schreiber, a scientist, cancer survivor, and author of Anti-Cancer, A New Way of Life. Grass-fed animals contain higher levels of Omega 3 fats, as well as lutein, which reduces the risk of macular degeneration. Before the end of WWII, animals were pasture fed. In the 1950s, demand for meat and dairy skyrocketed, and pastures were abandoned in favour of feedlots. Corn, soy and wheat became the principal diet for animals, and the meat produced from such animals became unnaturally high in Omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation. Omega-6 fatty acids cause us to stock fat, promote rigidity in cells and create inflammation. Obesity and cancer rates surged with the changes to livestock feed. Overcrowded feed lots and cages are inhumane. Over 30 per cent of arable land worldwide is dedicated to raising feed for animals. Why not use it for growing foods that people eat directly? If you find it difficult to obtain grass-fed meat, check with your local butcher. Or, go online to Harborsidefarms.com; a Manitoba company which raises pasture fed animals. For recipes that include meat substitutes, check out cookingvegetarian.com E-mail me: [email protected].
