Why does a nation so fond of its bacon-butties and steaks
find the thought of horsemeat so drastically shocking?
I must admit, I’m a little confused. Surely meat is meat,
right? Be it from a cow, pig, horse, or even a dog, an animal has nevertheless
gone through the same process of being reared, slaughtered and butchered for
the same sole purpose of reaching our dinner tables. Why is there then such a
strong emotional connection to a horse over a cow?
Is it a labelling scandal? Perhaps part of the outrage is
caused over a breach in trust. The fundamental dishonesty of selling something not
written on the tin is wrong. But this explanation doesn’t go far enough. The
fact that Heinz tomato ketchup contains celery extract I think is unlikely to
cause such an uproar as the "horse meat scandel". No, there is something far deeper and specific to meat
going on here.
Let me firstly give you some background to my perspective.
I’m a vegetarian. I have been since the age of 7 when I
first saw lorry loads of animals being carted off to an abattoir from the farm
next-door to where I live. I’m not wholly against eating meat though. Far from
it in fact.
But two things about meat eating really do set me on a rant.
Firstly, the welfare of the animals we eat.
I respect meat-eaters sourcing food from animals given a long,
happy life and killed in the most humane way possible. Compare this free-range
farm life to one in the wild where food is often scarce and death most likely a
painful event bought about by disease or predators. I know which one I’d
prefer. Sadly though, the vast majority of farm animals endure torturous and
miserable lives. In my opinion, mal-treatment of animals like this removes the
right to consume them.
Secondly, facing up to what we do.
I have little patience for those who would run screaming
from an abattoir, yet the next day would order a Big Mac without a second
thought. Meat-eaters need to accept responsibility for the consequences of
their food habits, rather than turning a blind eye.
So what’s my view on the "horsemeat scandal"?
The discovery of horsemeat in much of our everyday food is
making the unthinking meat-eater question the provenance of meat in a way that
hasn’t happened before. Some have even decided to ditch meat altogether, and
others are getting more picky by opting for the more highly regulated sources
instead.
To be honest I am pleasantly surprised by the fact value burgers
contain 0.04% meat, albeit from a horse. Cost cutting in meat production means much of the cheap meat on our supermarket shelves contains cuts that would make the average consumers squirm with disgust.
Eyeballs, intestines, chemically ground bones, ears … I could go on.
I hope this scandal isn’t the end of it.
There is a gulf of knowledge about what goes into the meat
we consume.
If scandals like this bring about more consumer awareness,
questioning and boycotting, then I’m all for a bit of meat cross-contamination.
It can only be a good thing.
