Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help - PaleoHacks.com

Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T13:59:56Z

My wife got me to watch the documentary "Food, Inc" yesterday. Normally I have a pretty high tolerance for things, and it takes a lot to impact my appetite, but this movie is killing me. The parts about how easy / prevalent E. Coli and Salmonella contamination was bad, but when they got into the ammonia treated beef I swear I questioned if I could ever eat ground beef again.

Idiot’s bliss, and I’ve just been kicked out of Eden.

I know grass fed pretty much takes care of this issue, but where I live its pretty damn difficult to find GF foods. The closest we usually get is “Natural,” “Organic,” or “Vegetarian Fed” meats, all of which mean next to nothing as far as I can tell.

Please help me, PaleoHacks, is there ANY way to tell if ground beef contains the ammonia-treated sludge? Any brands who are worse about this than others? Know of any responsible meat/egg farms in the south/central Texas area?

Answer by miked for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T14:04:14Z

The best thing is to not buy your meat in a big chain grocery store. I get most of my meat delivered from uswellnessmeats.com and then supplement with things from whole foods. I haven't been to a regular grocery store in months and when I do go it's just to stock up on things like juice.

Answer by none for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T14:06:30Z

http://www.eatwild.com/products/index.html

Go to the eatwild site and look for producers in your area. Buying direct from a farm may be your best bet.

Answer by Barb for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T14:22:25Z

That movie rocked us pretty hard as well but we were already aware of a lot of it and had already begun to limit factory farmed meat. What we found ourselves feeling at the end of the movie was motivation. It made us want to DO something. It also made us angry, which further motivated us. We decided right then and there that we would no longer consume ANY meat of which we didn't know and approve of the source and we would spread the word as much as we could. We would make an even bigger effort to supposrt family farms in our area. Try chatting up some vendors at your farmers market(get to know your farmer! :)), shop at a coop, seek out small town meat lockers. If you're still having a hard time with the ground beef, make your own. You can get hand crank meat grinders for somewhere around $30 I think, cheaper if you watcha t flea markets and yard sales.

Answer by Jules K for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T14:23:05Z

I often order from vermontgrassfedbeef.com- they do beef, pork, goat, sometimes lamb. Ideally I'd buy local, but I like being able to buy individual cuts. Their prices are pretty good!

Answer by being for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T14:23:19Z

i have not seen food inc yet, and i dont plan to. i sort of feel that after a couple of decades being interested and involved in animal rights, local agriculture and food politics, i know what i need to know already so i dont want to torture myself any more. as it is, knowing what i already know from michael pollan and matthew scully and others, i feel like a vegan when im in the grocery store. i cant buy it. it makes me want to gag. ill eat it at a restaurant if i swallow a big dose of cognitive dissonance first, but it takes effort for me to eat CAFO meat. im luky to be able to get meat shares from my small CSA, and i have friends who are farmers and hunters. we have a fish CSA here in my area, and i order beef from a farm about 70 miles away. its more expensive at the end of the year, and more effort, but im committed to the paleo way of eating, and equally committed to local agriculture and animal rights.

Answer by Thumper for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T15:09:02Z

Hey Tom! Don't be scared of meat! Knowledge is power - and now that you are more knowledgeable about your food you can make better choices!

ps. - good luck on all the research you are about to undertake on sourcing foods in your area - it can be a daunting task - but it can also be a lot of fun! I've met so many great farmers in my area - each has so many more good tips on other farmers and good sources of food in the area!

Answer by Fred B for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T15:13:45Z

When I can't get/afford GF beef, I get Organic, hormone/antibiotic free stuff from Costco, and cook it in butter from grass fed cows (Kerrygold). That way I still get the good stuff from grass fed ruminants (CLA, Omega 3) and the meat is clean.

Answer by Jennifer for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T15:19:36Z

Precisely why I decided that cutting corners elsewhere (no cable/satellite tv, no fancy phones with killer data plans) was worth the grassfed/organic meats. I'm writing a paper about Food Inc. for ethics so I've seen it far too many times!

Answer by bobdavis for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T16:06:33Z

Tom - you just need to head to the Pearl Brewery and hit up the local meat producers (Koch Ranch, for one) you'll find there. You should be able to find everything you need. Thunder Heart Bison is also there - http://www.thunderheartbison.com/content/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12&Itemid=6

You could also spend a few bucks on a hunting license... my freezer's full of Hill Country Whitetail.

Best -

bob

Answer by JCB for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T17:07:02Z

Meat Grinder

Go old school. ;p

We had one similar to this when I was a kid. The main problem with ground meat is what is on the outside surface that gets ground in and what other questionable parts get added by the processor. Buy inexpensive roasts, etc., and grind your own and you will solve most of the problem.

Answer by texasleah for Saw Food, Inc Last Night, Now I'm Scared of Meat. Help

2011-06-24T17:48:33Z

Tom, try Slanker's Grass Fed Meats. They ship from Paris, Texas.