Monday, January 24, 2011

Food Inc.

Recently, I watched a documentary called Food Inc.  Some of you may have seen it, some not.  I feel awful, because this documentary is based on something that I knew happened, but is something that I always turned a blind eye to.
For those of you who have not seen it, Food Inc. gives a 'behind-the-scene look' into where most of our meat products come from: factory farms.  It also talks about the secrets of large food corporations, and goes in depth into things they don't want the public to know.
It's hard for me to believe that things like this really happen in our country...in any country...but they do.  You would not believe some of the things that go on in these factory farms - chickens crammed into pitch dark pens all hours of the day...cows hung from their hind legs...pigs shoved into the tiniest of pens and beaten to make them move...  Some of these animals never get the chance to be outside, to roam freely.  They're trapped in concrete and wire pens all day, every day.  It's awful.

I wish that I would have seen this documentary sooner.  It breaks my heart to know what happens to these poor animals.  And since I have seen it, I have now decided to stop eating meat produced by factory farms, and possibly all together.  I will not support an industry that abuses animals in this manner.

I also realize that this is not for everyone.  I'm not trying to be preachy, and tell everyone they shouldn't eat meat, etc., etc.  That's not what I'm trying to do.  I simply feel as though this is too important to stay quiet on.
It was also discussed in Food Inc. about how difficult it is to find a place that sells food that hasn't been processed to bits and injected with all kinds of what not.  It's going to be hard for me to find purely organic food and free-range meats (if I decide I even want to eat meat ever again), but I'm willing to try. (If you have any recommendations, please feel free to let me know!)

Nothing on the face of the Earth deserves to be treated in this manner.

16 comments:

Claire Kiefer said...

Oh I agree so much! I haven't seen Food Inc. because I think it would make me too sad (but I have been a vegetarian for 15 years). It's appalling to me that animals are abused, and that people enjoy eating them after they've been treated so cruelly. The saddest thing to me is foie gras, where they force feed geese until their livers are engorged, and then serve the fatty livers . . . it makes me so sad that people can actually enjoy that, knowing what's behind it. :(

Kaleena J. said...

Whoa! I'm a huge documentary guru, I've never heard of this one. I'll have to check it out.

mysterymoor said...

If I had the funds (and it was more available in Spain) I would make an effort to avoid meat from this type of place

Anonymous said...

I turned vegetarian about eight months ago, not long after watching a documentary on the same subject. It really upset me to see how so many animals are treated... I imagine Food Inc. would probably break my heart so I'll probably avoid it but I'm glad to see it's getting a message out there. I realise I could've just stopped eating factory farmed meats but I'd always toyed with the idea of becoming vegetarian so I guess it was just the final push I needed. And by no means am I preachy vegetarian but I definitely think this whole factory farmed business should be brought to people's attention more.

kristin elena. said...

i remember seeing this in the theater and crying at some parts. it's horrible the way some animals are treated. and they don't have to be! that small farmer who let his chickens roam free, he had way less bacteria on his farm and in his chickens than the big factories that are abusing theirs. but the thing that was most disgusting to me was when instead of feeding the cows the grass diet they needed, they instead fed them cheap corn and ended up w/ an outbreak of e coli. and they're 'solution' was to bleach the meat! i was so sick to my stomach after seeing that.

Zoe said...

These pictures make me tearful, I disagree with anything that exploits humans or animals. I have been a vegetarian since I was 13, so coming up to 8 years now and I stand by the fact that it is one of the best decisions I ever made. I have no issues with others who eat meat, but I completely could not do it at all.

I blog about being vegetarian and also at living an all round more ethical lifestyle (i.e. without animal testing, human exploitation and harming the environment):
http://lifeofavegetariangirl.blogspot.com
I think there is a huge amount of people looking for an ethical lifestyle, which are modern and sophisticated.

Ashley said...

its really just easier to not eat meat all together. If you go vegetarian you won't regret it... promise :)

Lauren said...

One of my resolutions for this year was to think more about where my food comes from. Because organic and free-range meat is so expensive, I've been putting it off. But after this post, I won't any more. Thanks!

Emmy said...

The solution that worked out for me was cutting out ALL red meat while still eating fish. Fish is extremely good for you so I can't bring myself to cut it out. I also still eat chicken, only not as much, and I try to buy organic when I can.
I found that this is a simpler way to cut out specific things without going full-blown vegetarian right off the bat.

Liz said...

That film is amazing. Definitely changed my attitude towards food & how I eat.

Cute blog :)

Jamie Walker said...

After Food Inc and what you wrote.... I may not ever eat meat again. EVER. Ok maybe once in a while haha.

www.markandjamiewalker.blogspot.com

Ayeisha said...

I've been Veg for 5 years now after viewing a documentary along the same lines.
It disturbed me so much that I gave up meat eating completely.

Ayeisha
x

Unknown said...

i recently watched this documentary when I started reading 'eating animals' it's super sad. one of my NY resolutions was to go veg and quit supporting the meat industry. good luck!

Bee said...

this is such an upsetting movie. People can be so ignorant/naive when it comes to what they eat. I actually had a teacher tell our class the things in this movie weren't true and then someone asked if she'd seen it and she said, "well, no"...

Jenny said...

I'm a new reader and I couldn't agree with you more! I've been a vegetarian for almost 9 years and have never looked back. I haven't watched Food Inc because I just simply can't do it. I can't believe people treat animals this way and that nothing is being done about it. It's incredibly sad, but by going veg (or by buying from local farmers with good reputations) you can make a difference. : )
~Jen
http://mycrackedskull.blogspot.com

haley said...

this film is so amazing. yet so horrifying. i found it so interesting that all the big companies refused to be interviewed. hmm i wonder if they know they are doing everything wrong lol.

Post a Comment

Thank you for reading my little blog! I love reading your thoughts! If you have any questions, email me at ofallthenonsense@gmail.com. xo, A. ❤