meat from America

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rowlandwells

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meat from America
« on: October 13, 2020, 19:22 »
did anyone see the panorama program on the television last night reporting on the impending deal with America to import meat

it made me sick to watch those poor animals locked up in pens to produce cheap meat the cattle had no space  to move just being crammed full of food to produce cheep meat for the American market that could be in our UK supermarkets shortly same for pigs strapped up not even space to turn round talk about animal welfare they don't even know the meaning for animal welfare in America

and that's not counting the chemicals they pump into these poor animals that is banned in this country and then there's  use of chemicals for the growing media that have been banned in this country for the sake of protecting the environment and wildlife

when i look outside our window and see sheep eating fresh grass in a field with plenty of space and my farmer friends having there cattle also grazing on fresh grassland and then brought into a nice warm shed with a bed of straw and plenty of space to walk around

i have to say we are a country who looks very seriously at the way we rear our animals for the food chain animal welfare playing an important part of this cycle

i just hope that we can retain our British meat producers if this meat import is aloud to happen because i will not be buying anything but British

and it will be interesting to hear what our members feel abut this subject




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greenjay

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #1 on: October 13, 2020, 20:26 »
British food standards are amongst the highest in the world.
I think that the uk could easily be self sufficient in meat. pork is one of  the main imports but i am sure that if it were more profitable we could become sufficient in this too.
Unfortunately people are often lead by price

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John

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #2 on: October 13, 2020, 21:30 »
I would take anything from Panorama with a big pinch of salt. They've been proven to present their political agenda as fact in the past.

US big agriculture, feed lots and mega dairies is appalling on many levels but I understand the government will insist on suppliers meeting our standards. Incidentally, have you noticed how many products contain chicken from Thailand? Not noted for meeting our standards but apparently EU approved...



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Plot 1 Problems

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #3 on: October 14, 2020, 00:08 »
I would take anything from Panorama with a big pinch of salt. They've been proven to present their political agenda as fact in the past.

US big agriculture, feed lots and mega dairies is appalling on many levels but I understand the government will insist on suppliers meeting our standards. Incidentally, have you noticed how many products contain chicken from Thailand? Not noted for meeting our standards but apparently EU approved...

Not to mention Argentinian beef imports, worse standards than the US.
And agreed, Panaroma is the TV equivalent of clickbait these days.

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RubyRed

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #4 on: October 14, 2020, 11:12 »
I would take anything from Panorama with a big pinch of salt. They've been proven to present their political agenda as fact in the past.

US big agriculture, feed lots and mega dairies is appalling on many levels but I understand the government will insist on suppliers meeting our standards. Incidentally, have you noticed how many products contain chicken from Thailand? Not noted for meeting our standards but apparently EU approved...   
    I work in a supermarket and just for idle curiosity while shopping checked all the vast array of frozen chicken items. Inc nuggets etc. None were from Britain. Most were Thailand. And Poland and even Vietnam. 😠. All recognised for their humanity towards animals. NOT.You telling me that most of our chicken reared here couldn't be used. I'm the same as a lot of ppl and only buy British. I work on the tills and even press the point home there. I feel its my duty. 😉😉

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rowlandwells

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #5 on: October 14, 2020, 16:02 »
i take your point about imported meat and other imported food products but i have to say we never buy imported meats we have several butchers shops round here that sell locally reared beef pork lamb and chickens including free range eggs

also worth a mention that we import rape seed or rape seed oil from countries the still use chemicals that where banned by the EU for environmental reasons one being it was said to decimate our bee population

as for buying veg well we try not to buy veg because like most of us gardeners we use what we grow or what's the point in having an allotments tunnels and greenhouses

i know i go on about animal welfare because i feel passionate about rearing animals in a proper environment because the have quite relatively short life before going into the food chain so why shouldn't they have a decent short life

i can always remember we used to go to Wales for our hols for many years and stop on a traditionally Welsh farm mainly all stock and the farmer was very passionate about looking after his animals come day or night

 so will I continue to buy British produced food the answer is definitely yes  :D




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jaydig

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #6 on: October 14, 2020, 16:32 »
If meat and poultry produced in this country is clearly marked as such by the producers, and a check is kept that there is no cheating, then surely if we don't want the other stuff, then we won't buy it.  If we don't buy it there's no call for anyone to import it.  I am aware though that for some people the choice will always have to be based on cost, but once again this will be up to the individual to decide. Personally I don't eat meat or poultry, but if someone chooses an inhumanely produced product rather than become vegetarian because they like to eat meat,  then who am I to say this is wrong.

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GraciesGran

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #7 on: October 14, 2020, 17:08 »
We eat very little meat or poultry but what we do eat comes from butcher who buys locsl.  We don't eat ready meals so that's another thing I don't have to worry about. 

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John

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #8 on: October 14, 2020, 17:20 »
Thing is, food is too cheap. I know people won't find that a reasonable comment but the truth is that our food is a lot cheaper now (in comparison to incomes) than it has ever been. If we buy a chicken, nothing is wasted because that was how we were taught. But when it's dirt cheap there's no incentive to make the most of it.

I really hope that we will use leaving the EU to actually improve our standards with imported food rather than go down the price is all that matters route. Not all US produced food is the same - they have a thriving small farm sector. But selling quality is always a lot harder than price.




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grinling

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #9 on: October 14, 2020, 19:45 »
America owns a very large chicken processing plant as well as sausage factory. They are buying their way in.
I use the butchers as well as british free range in the supermarkets.
Food standards could be better here, but people do like cheap meat and eggs.
EU pork is indoors and cramped space.

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rowlandwells

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #10 on: October 15, 2020, 17:01 »
i think I've said my peace on this topic and  i tend to agree what  John is saying that does makes sense to me

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New shoot

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #11 on: October 15, 2020, 17:46 »
Cheap food has its place, but I agree that if that is the only deciding factor, you do often go down the line of processed foods with ingredients from who knows where.

Breaded chicken products are nearly always from overseas, but they are a bit of a con.  Lots of coating, so of course they look cheaper than fresh chicken, but you are mostly eating flavoured bread.  Sausages often have quite a shockingly low percentage of actual meat.

If you can or want to cook from scratch, your options open up and it doesn’t have to be expensive.  I am not vegetarian, but we often have veggie meals or ones where the meat is a only a small part of the meal.  I would rather do that and spend more when we do have meat, than eat it every day.





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wighty

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #12 on: October 15, 2020, 18:37 »
I saw the programme and was a bit shocked.  We don't eat much meat here, I prefer fish anyway.  Paul likes his meat so we always have it on a Sunday, but the rest of the week is split between two fish, two veggie days and then the odd day, like today, is using up leftovers. The 'odd' day is whatever we  fancy or can find in the freezer.

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John

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #13 on: October 15, 2020, 23:33 »
One of the problems of farming is that the economics are unrelated to the environment. Our cheap food today is subsidised by our children who will pay for the destruction we impose on the planet.
However - the BBC program presented a biased viewpoint that implied UK farming was on a level with US feedlot systems.
 From the NFU Online
Quote
Ofcom ruled that viewers only received ‘a partial analysis of the impact of livestock farming on the global environment and biodiversity, based almost exclusively on intensive farming methods’ and that ‘the relative environmental impact of non-intensive systems of livestock farming was an important consideration for viewers when assessing the environmental impact of meat production globally, and when considering what the invitation to reduce or eliminate meat consumption might mean in the UK context.’

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Subversive_plot

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Re: meat from America
« Reply #14 on: October 18, 2020, 18:49 »
First, I will say that I've had a polite warning from moderators about a thread I started that wound up verging into political issues, and a post from me that weighed in on those issues as expressed by others. This thread IMO includes some posts that verge into anti-USA bias and also against other nations. I'm asking only that rules be applied fairly.

I will weigh in on what I know of US poultry production (in a former job, I worked on environmentally-sound waste management for such companies, among other work).  All poultry produced or sold in the USA MUST be hormone-free, by US law, and must bear markings on the packaging indicating it is hormone-free, no exceptions. Including antibiotics in US poultry feed used to be common, but many producers realized consumers don't want the antibiotics, and have eliminated them from poultry production (to be honest, not all producers have made this change). I don't know what other specific chemicals might be a concern(?). To meet customer demands, US growers have adapted to produce what customers want, if UK buyers have certain requirements, the producers will adapt.

I have seen lurid footage in anti-meat production films, and have also been on such feedlots for poultry, pork, and beef production. There are bad actors in all industries, so take those films with a big grain of salt. The feedlots are not ideal, but are not as bad as the films. There is also a lot of grass-fed beef production in the USA, if UK consumers want that, convince the UK markets to buy those products, rather than corn-fed beef, fattened on feedlots. 

I eat US poultry, not US beef or pork, due to health reasons. When my wife buys beef for herself and our sons, she buys free-range grass-fed beef.  We have substantially reduced our overall meat consumption, because eating less meat is better for the environment.
« Last Edit: October 18, 2020, 19:41 by Subversive_plot »
"Somewhere between right and wrong, there is a garden. I will meet you there."~ Rumi



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