Omnivore's Dilemma pt. 1

As you can probably tell, I seem to like responding to the chapters about meat or the ones about the process of animals being slaughtered. Don’t get worried, I don’t enjoy reading it, in fact, I have to force myself to write about these sections because I hate them so much. I love meat and the protein that it provides, but if I actually think about what I’m eating… I begin to despise it. I chose to respond on these topics because they are the hardest for me to think about, so therefore, I need to think about them. I try to follow the whole “ignorance is bliss” idea, when people try to talk to me about the chicken nuggets at Mcdonalds, or my favorite hot dogs that always seem to taste better at a Tigers game. That being said, the very idea of an animal being born and raised simply in order to be slaughtered, and having to always face its inevitable death makes my heart ache. When responding to the meat sections of the readings, I feel slightly better about taking the “ignorance is bliss” approach when thinking about my food. So, this response is for me.

Ah there it is! I had a feeling, judging on the title of this book, that we would at some point be inevitably reading about meat again this semester. Pollan starts this section of the reading off by describing the smells as he describes a scene where he is driving by on the country roads. Automatically, we know where this is going. Pollan sets up our anticipation by describing the smell; “... An aroma whose proustian echos are decidedly more bus station men’s room than cows in the country…” This initial description automatically sets up the entire feeling of this chapter. Pollan lets his readers know that the meat portion of this book is smelly and is not to be romanticized at all.

Pollan talks about his initial experiences with cows and how he bought one so he could continue his endeavors in his food conquest. He explains that this opportunity of owning the pig was actually for his educational purposes, he claims that he actually wanted to experience the whole “farm-to-plate” in action, first hand. Even by third paragraph, I’m already uncomfortable with where this is is going. However, Pollan does an excellent job of keeping this experience in a wider scope, a bigger picture. He continues with this motif of corn which he seems very passionate about, and goes deeper.

Side-note: I found it very interesting when Pollan suggested that there was some sort of relationship between the grass and the cows; how the grass was able to continue living while constantly being stomped on all day...etc.. I love looking at the world like that, but I’m saddened to learn that cows are living shorter lives because we are becoming so “efficient”. If you didn’t feel a little choked up when you read about the animals being taken from their families, then I would be slightly concerned... Sorry little guys.

Pollan goes on to talk about how animals have actually moved away from farms, in order to be used, and are pulled toward the city. I find this to be very interesting because I had never really thought about that initial shift that helped the progression of meat and food industries today. The name even kills me; “Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation”. He explains that we have almost forced animals to develop to eat the foods that can be produced rapidly and quickly, which grosses me out. The whole thing seems unnatural and gross especially when he explains all of the negative effects that the CAFO has had on the environment… And everything in between. I loved Pollan’s humor in the paragraph where he talks about simple farming being a simple solution, and the industries causing even bigger problems when their attempts were really to cause less and the constant humor throughout the entire reading. His humor also shines through when he talks about the cow’s daily life. Ok Michael Pollan, you earned some credibility with me.