I have just discovered the easiest way to convert a "meat-lover" (my husband), into a conscious meat lover. If I rank the arguments in this house on a scale from 1-10, buying organic meat (expensive) rather than cheap meat (massive) is probably on RANK 2.
Yes, ma'am, my recent purchase of a 1/4 of happy cow got some really nasty "so, is that ALL the meat for xx$$'s??".
Today, on our 7 hour ride home from vacation, we passed Harris Ranch. They are a large distributor of "natural beef". They do have a very large and luxurious resort out in the middle of nowhere (I am not sure what purpose it has), and right next to it, a huge feedlot of cows.I am assuming they belong to Harris Ranch, but I will just assume until proven guilty. I will bet my ass they are not happy cows. First, you are hit with the smell. Then, you will ride by huge pens, no grass, lots of cows. No trees, no nothing, just fences, dirt, cow shit, and cows.
Here is an excerpt from their website:
"Humane Handling
Harris Ranch takes exceptional care to ensure the well-being of our cattle. Each and every day—rain or shine—cowboys ride the pens to ensure the health and welfare of every animal in their care. All cattle are fed in large, well-maintained, outdoor pens that are equipped with an automated sprinkler system to reduce dust and cool cattle during the summer months. World-renowned animal behaviorist, Dr. Temple Grandin, has assisted with the design of cattle handling facilities and conducted employee training programs to ensure proper animal handling techniques."
Ok, I did not see the "mist" misting the poor cows, it was only about 100C outside, what I did see was that there was no vegetation whatsoever near by. While riding down the "Agricultural Corridor", we saw a few more of these feed pens. Dismaying.
On a happy note: We did see several ranches with their cows doing what cows do: eating grass, shooting the breeze, and hanging out under the shade.
My son informed us that WHEN he becomes a farmer, he will only have Happy Cows. My husband is finally seeing, live and real, why I pay $2-5 more a pound for happy meat.
Quality instead of Quantity.