Compassionate Carnivore: Or, How To Keep Animals Happy, Save Old Macdonald's Farm, Reduce Your Hoofprint, And Still Eat Meat (2008) - Plot & Excerpts
I really enjoyed both of the author's books chronicling her entry into and subsequent life on a farm and read this one simply to hear more from her. I think it's an excellent read for those who maybe don't understand the connection between the life of an animal and the death of that same animal when it's raised for food. I love that as a newcomer to farming she had to learn to cope with that transition and I think she explains why you should care if your edibles were "free-range" or "grass fed". As a chef this is one of the most asked questions I get from my clients, whats the difference and why should I pay more? This was a load of rot. Written by two women, a couple, who have made their packet and have given up the city life to have a green farm and breed mostly sheep. The book's purpose is to tell us all that we should eat local meat where we have personally inspected the farm (seriously, the author gives details on exactly how to find local farms to inspect and how much to 'tip' the farmer for showing you around even if you are later going to give him hundreds of dollars for his animals). It is recommended that you buy a whole animal at a time - try and find a friend who likes endless cuts of lamb. If you do go for this mega-meat option, which they recommend, but they would, wouldn't they, they give you instructions on how to personally instruct the butcher who will kill the animal for you, on how you want it cut up and then you can store it in your freezer for a million mutton meals or sell it. This will make the farmers and butchers very happy, not so much their dead animal going to a good home (!) but you spending a lot of dosh! This will enable the farmers and butchers to make a good enough living to continue and, as a side effect, the local electrics retailer gets a bit of help since you will have to buy at least one huge vast freezer.Yes, they admit its going to cost you a lot more money, but its soooo worth it. Think of the animals raised in such a green way, think of the butcher practicing his craft for you individually (think of the power company making a fortune from running your freezers). Yeah right, all very green (not) and we all live in farming country and have huge disposable incomes and like to eat a whole sheep day after day. Mutton roast, mutton shepherd's pie, mutton rissoles, mutton bolognaise, mutton kebabs, mutton burgers, mutton stew, mutton mutton mutton. The idea of it is enough to turn me vegetarian if I wasn't already (unless I'm offered smoked salmon pizza then I'm not). Still it could be worse, it could be a whole cow...The kicker: The authors recommend that you become vegetarian if you do not want to buy your meat in this way, as buying supermarket meat, while affordable, will detract from their 'green' farming movement.
What do You think about Compassionate Carnivore: Or, How To Keep Animals Happy, Save Old Macdonald's Farm, Reduce Your Hoofprint, And Still Eat Meat (2008)?
I am writing a review of this book for the a food magazine. Stay tuned for more details!
—milypuff17
Excellent (and quick and easy) read! Honest and funny writing and so much relevant truth.
—Nicola
