ALT-2 Breaking with Thanksgiving Tradition
10 Reasons Not to Eat Turkey This ThanksgivingWhen the Thanksgiving season rolls around, people just naturally think that it's a reason to eat turkey. We've all been indoctrinated into the tradition of meat-eating to such a degree that we've become accustomed to it. We fail to see the cruelty, the lack of compassion, and the basic stupidity of continuing to eat meat. The truth is that the turkey is a naturally intelligent, playful and sociable animal. There are plenty of other reasons to go vegetarian this Thanksgiving.
Turkeys experience pain and suffering.
And in factory farms, they sure to experience massive amounts. The factory farm might as well be called an abuse farm, given the way that the animals are treated. According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and the Humane Society of the United States, turkeys are not protected from abuse under federal law. Their toes and beaks are cut off without anesthesia in order to prevent fighting and reduce injuries. Many turkeys are regularly beaten, mutilated and otherwise abused by factory workers, and are when they go to slaughter, they're dunked in scalding hot water while they're still alive and fully conscious for feather removal.
Turkeys are raised in extremely filthy conditions.
They are housed in windowless sheds, and the incredible quantity of feces which builds up forces the turkeys to breathe ammonia their entire lives, burning their skin, throats and lungs. The bird flu which has killed many people exists in humans because wild birds pass the virus to domesticated fowl, which then mutates and can be spread to people who come in contact with an infected bird. Other dangerous organisms such as E. coli and Salmonella do not visibly sicken animals on the farm, yet can be passed to humans in contaminated meat. Some strains of these bacteria are highly virulent and antibiotic resistant. This is in large part because turkeys raised on factory farms are drugged with antibiotics their entire lives in order to prevent disease and speed their growth.
The USDA rules regarding turkeys are not sufficient to protect consumers from disease.
For example, they recently ruled that poultry with signs of disease such as cancers, open sores and intestinal worms are safe for human consumption. Under these new rules, these signs have been reclassified as "aesthetic problems." Needless to say, this ruling has been heavily protested. In 2004, a listeria outbreak caused four deaths which were linked to poultry products which were produced by Cargill. The company recalled 17 million pounds of turkey as a result. The outbreak also caused miscarriages or stillbirths in three women.
Most of the turkeys which are sold at the grocery store are genetically modified.
This includes so-called "free range" turkeys which are allowed access to the outdoors. Their genes have been altered to cause the breast to grow to unnatural and unhealthy proportions. This abnormal growth causes many birds to become lame, and often breaks their legs, which are too weak to support their artificially huge bodies. Genetically modified foods have encountered resistance from consumers, and in some areas, wholesale rejection. They are associated with multiple harmful effects to human health, including cancer, allergies, infectious disease and death.
The United States government does not have the power to recall contaminated meat and other animal product.
Instead, we must depend upon greedy food companies to voluntarily recall dangerous and infectious food products. Most of the meat Americans purchase from grocery stores is infected with antibiotic-resistant "super-bacteria." One antibiotic used on factory farms contains a highly carcinogenic form of arsenic, which after being fed to poultry is then passed to the consumer. Exposure to this form of arsenic on a daily basis can cause not only cancer, but also dementia and other neurological disorders.
Factory farming of turkeys is damaging to the environment.
The bodily wastes produced by turkeys and other animals raised for meat production is 130 times greater than the bodily wastes of the entire American population. There are no federal laws regulating how these wastes are disposed of. In addition, the production of meat products such as turkey consumes far more resources than the production of grain or legume products. It contributes to air pollution, water pollution, water shortages and soil erosion.
Factory farming of turkeys contributes to world hunger.
Nearly eighty percent of the land used for agriculture in the United States is used to raise livestock. A significant amount of the land mass of the United States is used to grow crops for livestock and to allow them to graze. The land has a limited ability to produce food, and can be damaged and made infertile by over-use. This land could be used much more efficiently to produce protein from vegetables, grains and legumes. The process of producing meat, on the other hand, is incredibly wasteful. It takes about four pounds of feed and eight hundred gallons of water to produce one pound of turkey.
Factory farming of turkeys is harmful to workers.
People who work in the turkey production industry are subject to dangerous and filthy working conditions. They are forced to work at excessive speeds and without adequate safety gear to increase the profits of turkey farmers. This constitutes systematic exploitation of workers in an environment rife with human rights violations. In short, factory farms are dens of suffering for humans as well as the animals being produced for slaughter.
Turkey contains large quantities of saturated fat and cholesterol.
With heart disease reigning as a primary cause of death in the United States, we don't need any more fat to clog our arteries. The fact is that vegetarians are just healthier. They have significantly lower rates of obesity, heart disease and cancer than meat-eaters.
The vegetarian alternatives to eating turkey at Thanksgiving are limitless.
If you still crave the texture and taste of meat, you can try several different turkey substitutes such as Tofurky, Tofurky Deli Slices and the UnTurkey. However, if a meat substitute simply won't do, there are many vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes which can satisfy. Some people favor loaves made from legumes, grains and nuts for a vegetarian Thanksgiving. However, other vegetarian dishes such as stuffed squash and peppers, stews and savory pies can make great entrees for Thanksgiving as well. A vegetarian shepherd's pie can be easily made with pre-packaged soy chik'n, tofu, textured vegetable protein or seitan according to your preference. Being a vegetarian at Thanksgiving is very liberating, and opens you up to new possibilities. You can still make the traditional side dishes, with vegetarian stuffing and cream based or brown gravy. But if you want a vegetarian Sicilian pizza or a vegan five alarm chili as the centerpiece for your vegetarian Thanksgiving feast, go ahead! Declare your freedom as well as the turkey's this Thanksgiving!
There is no way to satisfy America's insatiable appetite for turkey at Thanksgiving other than factory farms. The simple fact is that approximately 46 million turkeys are slaughtered every year at Thanksgiving, out of a total of between 250 and 300 million turkeys which are slaughtered in the U.S. each year. Turkey consumption has more than doubled since 1970. Our lust for meat has gotten out of control, taking a toll of suffering on both animal and human-kind. Organic and free-range farms are no substitute. The only way to stop this insanity is to say no to eating turkey.
