Over the years, I have posted a few times about the "food" industry. Living in the Central Valley of California was living too close to the way we "manufacture" our dairy products (milk and cheese), meat and eggs and chickens. I could not condone (most of) that lifestyle and became a vegetarian. There are some dairies that I knew of that took very good care of their cows, but most are just meal tickets. Milking TWO THOUSAND COWS....around the clock with them living in questionable conditions while perpetually pregnant or producing is not a pretty sight.

I wish the video was mandatory viewing. Everyone needs to know where their foods comes from and how it is raised and slaughtered. There would be a lot more vegetarians.
Donna

I've never seen the movie, but I live in a small town in the Central Valley. Many if the families here make their living in dairies or come from a long line of dairymen. It is hard to socialize with them and be disgusted by their way of life at the same time. Their are a few small fourth generation dairies that have taken on a more ethical way of running their farms, but most are disgusting. The conditions those animals live in is FAR from the "Happy Cows" we see on TV. Laying and living in mounds of manure, many with open sores. I see trucks hauling piles of dead cows all the time. I've switched to organic milk and cheese, it's the best I can do, but man that stuff is so expensive.

It's always puzzles me when post like this don't get much interest. The "used kleenex" post has 100 hits and something as compelling as where our food comes from has 4 hits.

Donna

I think this issue is hard to deal with for many people. On the one hand, people don't really want to become vegetarian and/or vegan, on the other hand, they don't want to know how these animals are mistreated. Of course, there are people who don't care one bit, but most people would probably prefer that animals are treated as humanely as possible. There is no way my husband would go back to being vegetarian, so we compromised and only buy free-range, grass-fed beef instead of factory farm meat. For poultry, free-range chicken and eggs. And organic milk and cheese. But yes, it is very expensive and I think it's terrible that humanely raised meat and dairy products are not more affordable and the norm, instead of the exception.

Thanks for posting, Joann. I do intend to see it.
I think Petra is correct. Everyone has to pick their own issues that they are passionate about. Commenting on the kleenex issue is a lot easier than changing the way you look at, by and consume food. I'll admit I passed this thread by the first time I looked, but I commented twice on the kleenex thread!
"The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair was in part responsible for me giving up meat nearly 25 years ago. I just did not want any part of that. That being said, I consider someone else's decisions on what they eat and don't eat to be as personal a religion - and like religion, not to be crticized by me.
I recently met an organic egg farmer at a party and the conversation was a good reminder. TG bought organic eggs the next week lol, so I guess he was persuasive!

Well I know that some animals on our food chain are not healthly for us and downright cruel to the animals. But I'm still not giving up my meat. I do buy beef only locally from a guy that has only a few beef and I know he takes good care of the animals. I should add that you can really tell that by the taste. But with all we know of the food animal industry, I know of a few people that work with the vegatable/fruit industry. Their stories are quite shocking also. While no animal gets hurt, we as humans certainly do. We also need to be careful with where we buy these from. The experts are working on chemically changing or altering our wheat, fruit, veggies etc. It's to the point that you really need to know where everything you eat comes from and not just the animal.

DH stopped eating meat a long time ago but now he has given up poultry also. Its so hard to find something to cook. His stomach was hurting when eating chicken and now that stopped. I have to see the movie as soon as I can find it. Its really not that expensive if you think of it, you will pay a high price for junk food and think nothing of it, and the price of meat is very high in comparison. You give up one item to buy another. I don't eat much meat either so it doesn't bother me.

I saw the Oprah show yesterday and was disgusted by what I saw. I will continue to eat meat but will certainly be more aware of where it is coming from and who I purchase from. We also need to be concerned, as someone posted, about our fruits and vegetables with all the spraying and treating that goes on with those. I think some of my flower beds may be replaced for a larger veggy garden this year.
The show was really disturbing to me...I hope as consumers we can try and turn things around.

My son is attending Culinary Arts and it was required that he saw the film. It has changed him, in his way of cooking and what he buys. He is helping me with what I buy and eat also. I have not seen it yet, but being from Iowa, and all the hog confinements around here, I understand. We are considering buying the 2 acres just north of our house, and raising just enough for us and extended family.
Again, I am a farm gal. My Dad was always very conscientious in his care of his animals.

Thought I would pass along this link for anyone interested in finding local foods. It was one of the many links on the Food Inc site.

Here is a link that might be useful: eat well search engine

Thanks for the link Taigen, I actually discovered a couple places not far from me.

Food inc is available on Netflix as an instant watch if anyone is interested.I have it saved but haven't watched it yet. Mabey tomorrow.

Some of us try to do the best we can but it's not so easy. My husband and I both have health issues. Both are diabetic and huband cannot have beans but needs a high protein diet. Just loose weight won't do it, far from being overweight. Due to poor eyesight we both don't drive anymore and next freerange source for beef and eggs is 50 miles away. Gardening also is not as extensive as it has been due to age and health and the next farmers market is 30 miles away. So what are you going to do? Buy on line - IF you can afford to.

" Commenting on the kleenex issue is a lot easier than changing the way you look at, buy and consume food. I'll admit I passed this thread by the first time I looked, but I commented twice on the kleenex thread!"
Yes it is difficult to see how animals are confined and slaughtered. How helpless and afraid they must feel. I am not saying that everyone should stop eating meat. I am saying that we need to know how our food is coming to our table and stand up for more humane treatment of animals.
Donna

If you like Food Inc you have to see King Corn and Bad Seed-the Truth about our Food. All 3 are excellent productions. There's a slew of documentaries available on Netflix, many through streaming.

I'm be buying everything organic from now on (not just fruits and veggies like I had been doing) and only grass fed beef. I had been buying free-range/cage free eggs but not organic eggs. So what if it costs me $4 a dozen instead of 2, it's worth it.

You're missing the point if you think this film is trying to convert you to vegetarianism, on the contrary we need to support the ranchers trying to make a living selling their grass fed cattle and the chicken farmers who let the birds run free range. As the demand grows they'll push out the guys with the feed lots.

When I go out to restaurants I'll pretend I'm vegetarian because I don't know where the meat came from but at home I'll eat it. Whole Foods sells grass fed beef. You can also order it online through sties like LocalHarvest.com. Ranchers from across the country sell their grass fed beef directly to the consumer this way.

Take a look at 'Food Beware: The French Organic Revolution' by Jean-Paul Jaud if you can. It is an award winner. Click below for a short clip from the movie.

It is playing in selected theaters right now.

"Food Beware begins with a visit to a small village in France, where the town's mayor has decided to make the school lunch menu organic and locally grown. It then talks to a wide variety of people with differing perspectives to find common ground - children, parents, teachers, health care workers, farmers, elected officials, scientists, researchers and the victims of illnesses themselves. Revealed in these moving and often surprising conversations are the abuses of the food industry, the competing interests of agrobusiness and public health, the challenges and rewards of safe food production, and the practical solutions that we can all take part in."

http://firstrunfeatures.com/foodbewaredvd.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Movie