Cyndi's Two Cents

Activists want to take meat off your plate

Commentary.

In a recent column, I voiced my disappointment that in just one decade, Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has managed to convince CEO’s at nearly 100 major food companies that it (HSUS) knows more about raising livestock than veterinarians, researchers, farmers and ranchers.  In this same column, I voiced dismay that executives with such great business acumen “would put so much trust in a fund-raising organization that employs many who do not eat meat and whose goal it is to prevent everyone else from eating meat.”  

I received feedback from a few people on both sides of this issue.  Some agreed whole-heartedly, while a couple of others disagreed.  One gentleman asked that I please cite my claim that HSUS wants to prevent people from eating meat.

All you need to do is go to the HSUS website and look around and . . . Voila!  One HSUS mantra is “Reduce, refine, and replace.”   

From the HSUS website:

“The HSUS promotes eating with conscience and embracing the Three Rs—reducing the consumption of meat and other animal-based foods; refining the diet by avoiding products from the worst production systems (e.g., switching to cage-free eggs); and replacing meat and other animal-based foods in the diet with plant-based foods.  Explore our Guide to Meat-Free Meals and get recipes, cooking tips, and news of interest to people who are voting with their forks to support humane treatment of farm animals.” 

The same gentleman who requested the aforementioned information believes that HSUS has and is helping farmers.  He wrote, “Chicken processors took away free market for poultry. And in less than 10 years the packers took away free market for hog farmers. This impresses me more than HSUS wanting sows in gestation crates.”

This farmer told me that today, he doesn’t know of any hog farmers or chicken farmers that own their own herds.  He said that he believes somebody is trying figure out how to control the nations beef herd. He said, “Hog Packers and Chicken Processors have more control of our country’s meat supply than China has on its own.”

I very much appreciate the feedback and difference of opinion, but it is my opinion that this gentleman and I are not only on different sides of an issue, we are on different pages and perhaps even different books.  Corporate ownership of livestock may or may not be bad for farmers raising chickens, hogs and cattle.  That’s not the point.

The bottom line is this:  Anti-animal agriculture organizations do not care if you own your hogs or someone else owns the hogs on your farm or if you have 10 hogs or 10,000 hogs.  They don’t care if you are new to farming or have a family farm that has been in your family for 7 generations.  They don’t care if you are 25 or 75 years old or if you are a man or woman.  They are not helping anyone in animal agriculture.