Happy New Year to all of you! It’s been a
while since I have posted – August 30th to be exact (when I started
the Nutrition Diploma). It’s been very interesting so far and I have been
enjoying it, but it has certainly tested me in many ways.
One of my greatest fears going into this
program was that it would challenge the healthy relationship that I had worked
so hard to develop with food. And at various points throughout these first 4
months, it has done exactly that. Knowledge is power, but sometimes ignorance is
bliss.
In my class we have quite an array of
people. While almost all are women, the group itself is varied. Some are vegan, some
are paleo, some are bodybuilders, some are people just wanting to get healthier
in their own lives. There is a farmer, an electrician, and even a dietician in
the class. It’s made for some interesting discussions along the way as you may well
imagine.
I don’t ever see myself becoming vegan,
although I think we all could greatly benefit from eating a more ‘plant based’
diet – even the paleo peeps. I don’t believe we need to eat as much meat as we do,
and not every dinner needs to be fashioned around a big piece of protein. As a meat eater, I feel strongly about doing my best to ensure that the meat or
fish I eat has, to the best of one’s ability, been raised and butchered as
ethically and humanely as possible. I am an animal lover and it’s
unconscionable how some animals are treated as they are prepared for us human’s
to eat. I think there are much better models than factory farming, and I do
believe that if one is going to consume meat, they need to take a deeper look into
what it is that they are eating. It’s simply too easy to make this dissociation
when we are in the grocery stores.
At least now, there are more options being
presented to us as consumers. Co-op seems to be the best at this so far,
offering choices like free-range meats from reputable places such as Sunworks
Farms. I encourage every single one of you to start making more conscious choices
when it comes to buying animal products. Believe me, this is and has been a
work in progress myself for some time. When you know better, you do better (or
at least you should). I don’t believe there is any reason why anyone shouldn’t
be purchasing free range, cage free eggs (for example) or why you can’t at least begin questioning
how your meat, poultry and seafood got onto your plate.
Visiting farmers markets and doing some
online research can help you start finding the people who are doing things
right in your area. Here in Alberta, there are many choices around us, if we
care enough to find farmers and butchers who have made the decision to handle
their animals more humanely and ethically. Below are a few organizations who
are doing just that. If you’re a meat eater, I think you have a moral
obligation to check it out. Also, if you don’t see good options offered at your
local grocery store for free range, ethically and/or humanely raised, then ask
them about providing such options! Also, ask the same of restaurants you
frequent. We vote with our dollar every single time we make a purchase.
Guys, there are so many options that are
better than your standard supermarket, factory farm meats. It’s time to ask
questions about how your meat was cared for, how it was handled, how it was
butchered. If we all do our part,
we can make a change.
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