If you've been reading, you know that I have been on a vegetarian kick. After everything I've learned, I decided I needed a break from eating animal products until I figure out what to do next. I am not advocating that everyone go out and stop eating meat or animal products. In the case of industrial farming, it is actually better to be a meat-eater. You can have a much stronger impact for invoking change. This naturally leads me to the next logical step: food shopping.
Let me premise that I looooooove grocery shopping. A usual shopping trip for me is probably an hour, maybe more. I know, I'm terrible! And I know it will change the minute I have kids. I just love looking at all of the different options. To me, a grocery store is a heavenly oasis of culinary possibilities (sigh). I will spend 10 mintues analyzing granola bars comparing the nutrition label to it's price per bar to its taste/enjoyment level to decide which is best. I can get lost in the aisles in such endeavors, which is partly why I follow the U-shape model of grocery store shopping. Have you ever heard of a grocery store tour? If not then now you have and dietitians are famous for them. One of the first things you always hear is to shop along the outside of the store, not in the aisles, because that is where the freshest food is located. Thus a U-shape. Granted, I don't think it's an actual model it's just good advice.
Last weekend, I excitedly embarked on a quest for the necessary ingredients for my new recipes. My first food shopping trip with my newfound info. Over a period of 2 days, I went to Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, A Southern Season (a local specialty store), Food Lion, and a small Asian market to complete my list. Inefficient doesn't even describe it. It was a big plop but that's also what happens when you make a big change. I made sure that my travels did not go to waste! I perused the meat and dairy sections looking for some food labels about animal welfare that I had found online. I found nothing! Not one label. There was a lot about not using hormones, some about antibiotics, and several organic, but that was all. I couldn't figure out what that meant for the cow or pig or chicken that it came from. I felt like a little kid with a balloon right after a bigger kid runs up a pops it.
After going home, I realized that I would need to do a lot more to be an aware consumer. I started looking on product websites like Cabot Creamery and Eggland's best, also reading people's comment threads. That can be a bit tedious and still confusing. The best thing that I found that I think everyone should try is this website called Eathumane.org that was created by WSPA. Guess who's their new celebrity face? American Idol judge Simon Cowell! He has a heart after all. So back to the website. What's great about it is that it has all sorts of chain stores like Walmart, Costco, and Food Lion. You pick the store and then you choose the product: chicken, eggs, beef, etc. It will tell you what foods they carry that are more farm-animal friendly choices using simple grading scales of 1) Good, 2) Better, and 3) Best. For definitions, click here. Who knew that Food Lion had brand of American Humane Certified chicken? You might be surprised what you find and where.
There is one label I have really wanted to find and tonight I finally found it! In fact, I lost a bet with my boyfriend and had to buy him corned beef because he was able to find some that fit my buying criteria. Apparently this is like the holy grail of food labels: Animal Welfare Approved. It's the new grading created by the Animal Welfare Institute and if you do your research, you will come to find that it is the best out there. It was in the beef section at my neighborhood coop, Weaver Street Market. It's also under the "Best" category on Eathumane.org. So tonight, in honor of St. Patrick's day and finding some AWA beef, I had my first taste of meat in over a week and it was excellent.
If you're buying anything not fresh,the key is actually reading the ingredients and knowing what they are. It's actually quite challenging, but once you've looked up what things are you'll be a very knowledgeable consumer. Case in point - Animal Rennet. Animal rennet is an ingredient in many cheeses. It's actually produced typically as a byproduct of the veal industry. It's essentially a calf stomach extract. I've been anti-veal for a long time, but when I found out that the cheese I was eating supported the industry I had to cut out cheese with animal rennet.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, Whole Foods has a meat welfare ratings system at their butcher, and I have to give a shout out to Fresh Market who has expanded their organic produce section.
Thanks for the posting, Randall, I hadn't even thought of that. I've always heard that rennet is an enzyme but not realized where it was coming from. Whole foods also has their meat standards online, but not the specific ratings -I guess those are only in the store.
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