I tried being Veggie in high school. Well, since I have hypoglycemia and anemia, it wasn't such a good idea. I also can't process iron pills, and have issues processing iron from vegetables. So meat=me not being yellow and sick.
I don't agree with "factory farmed" animals. I prefer meat that comes from farmers that raise them properly. I buy organic when I can (and that includes milk, cheese and eggs as well as fruits, veggies and meat). I try to use the WHOLE animal (for example, I eat lamb--I recently bought a lamb's head with the flesh still on--I boiled it for soup stock, then cleaned it and am using the jaw bone for my Collel handle, and the skull for Tapping the Bone).
I give THANKS to the animals who have given their lives for me to be able to eat. I give THANKS to the animals who give me eggs, milk, etc. I give THANKS to the animals that I wear.
I believe hunting is EXTREMELY environmentally friendly (hunters--at least the ones I know--have respect for the animals, and also use ALL of it), and am always happy to receive game meat or fresh fish from friends.
This spring/summer I hope to go to auction and buy a whole cow to be butchered (in the Mennonite area, so it's organically raised and treated properly) and frozen for the winter.
Of course, I'm into urban/suburban homesteading. And I practice a magical tradition where one of our tools is a skull, and another is a dried toad.
wasted energy ,
its called wisdom , it also comes with age , No offense Aelwyn.
Aelwyn,
I also buy only organic foods , I shop around for the best prices , The Monsanto Corp has done everything it can to take over with their GMO ( genetically modified Foods ) its funny though tha many European contries do not allow them to be sold with out proper labelling , here in The USA they do not have to label that they are GMO everything you eat here that is bought in the grocer is GMO
Re: Become vegetarians!!! By: kts Moderator / Adept
Post # 97 Dec 22, 2008
Just remember that there are no good standards for the word organic and a lot of food only needs a percentage to be labeled as organic. This means that it may not all be organic food contained inside the package.
The other thought to keep in mind about organically grown food is the soil quality that the food has been grown in. Most do not understand that the chemicals used on fruits and vegetables leches into the soil and can stay there for decades. This means that even though the food is currently being grown without chemicals the plants can still be absorbing them from the soil. Even animals that are being raised can have organically grown food given to them but it does not mean that they or the food they eat is chemical free.
*I am using the word chemical as in "unnatural pesticides and fertilizers". There are plenty of natural alternatives and they are used by farmers of organic foods.
Compost is the best fertilizer. Beneficial insects are a good start to pest control and if that does not work there are many natural pesticides. Here is a link for more info;
Believe me we in our family are fully aware of this and of course my 27 yr old son is a fanatic about it , he reads all the packages and labels to make sure it is what it says and he recently became a raw food eater ( YUCK) he lost like 25 LBS the first 2 weeks , which he really didnt need to lose any and he was getting me all worried about him ... right now though he is visiting his father and grandpa in Greece where they own a farm , ( he claims that he will not come back to the states he loves it there ) .
For a farm to grow organic crops it needs to be at least 4 yrs of no chemicals used in the ground and even the seedlings have to be organically grown before they are deemed organic .
I eat organic for the most part. How do I know for sure? It's grown by Mennonites who bring their groceries to market in a horse and buggy (I kid you not). They did not use unnatural fertilizer or pesticides as it goes against their belief systems.
We are VERY lucky around here to have a lot of Mennonite and Amish communities, where "organic" food is the norm.
Also, I shop at an organic store and pay attention to the labeling. Most importantly, I try to eat whole foods (no processed). While it doesn't always work (since life is so crazy), for the most part, I feel healthier (which is good, with many chronic illnesses wracking my body).
