What arrived first, egg or chicken?
Lets hear your speculation.
What arrived first, chicken or egg?
Were there feathers before ovulation?
I used to work with a man who earlier in his life worked in a poultry processing plant. He would work all night killing, plucking, gutting, chilling and packing young chickens. The chickens would ship to the counters of grocery stores or find themselves turning on the rotisserie at restaurants.
Every once in a while they would receive an order to process a group of older laying hens who's production had fallen off. These birds were prepared for a company that made soup, meat for soup making need not be overly tender. My friend told me that often when slaughtering the hens they would find eggs within the bodies of the chickens. The crew would divide the eggs up at the end of their shift and bring them home to feed to their families.
I eat lots of eggs and enjoy chicken soup, either canned or homemade, but I found this story to be rather disturbing. I know that my eggs are not gathered by pretty maidens in bonnet and apron. I know that large scale production keeps prices down and puts protein on the plates of children who would otherwise have very little of it, but there's something about the industrialization of agriculture that is undeniably nasty.
If you are a carnivore with a conscience,
eat less meat, though eating meat be seductive.
If you happen to be an older laying hen,
then for goodness sakes remain productive!
8 comments:
I enjoy meat, & poultry as well as the next guy....and as irresponsible as this sounds, I tend to try to not think about how it got there
(ps....the "word verification" I neede to put in for this comment, was....nestig (sounds kinda like nest egg, doesn't it?))
this is great, p.!
love the poetry at the beginning and end—especially the last two verses.
we were JUST talking about this—my friends mary and jenny and i. we were talking in disgust at how they mass produce and bulk up the chickens for the food industry. then we all commented on how nice it is to raise your own chickens. my sister's family does this, and they have their own fresh eggs from them. it's the way to go.
Peter,
I was reading the Toronto Star yesterday and your post made me think you might be interested in glancing over this article: http://www.thestar.com/article/651938
I am ecstatic over the idea of this! If many people had the room and will to keep a few chickens and a small vegetable garden, "going local" could be very local; animals would be (ideally) treated far better than they are in factory conditions. Kept less densely then they are in factories, the spread of disease would be less likely, too, and genetic modification perhaps not so necessary .Small communities could be very self sustainable; I would love to be able to buy some eggs from a neighbour's backyard!
Hi Ghosty, thanks for the heads up on the article. It always bugs me that the largest cultivated crop in North America, is the grass on our lawns. People from other parts of the world must think that we are crazy. All that water and energy that we waste.
If it was allowed in my region I would keep a few hens for sure. I used to have a Portuguese neighbour that raised rabbits for food, as for as I know he never had bylaw officer knock on the door.
Like you the idea of urban agriculture appeals to me. Its kind of a slow food -European thing. Imagine neighbourhoods getting together in the fall and having a huge feast!
This struck a chord in me. Each time I eat either poultry/meat, I feel a pang of conscience, especially in light of the way our animals are handled and our food is processed. I rarely eat meat these days simply because my spirit is more joyful when I don't. Thank you for making me think.
A P.S. here:
A health food store just opened up down the street and promises locally raised beef and poetry. I live in the country, so can actually visit my meat before I eat. These animals have a glorious life and are treated humanely. Perhaps I'll give it another try...
thought provoking indeed. my uncle and aunt farm with chickens. due to the fact that i know what their procedures entail, i only shop in teh stores that they supplied. now to find such a store in ireland...
Hey Peter.. your reply made me laugh! I am portuguese and my family in Portugal certainly grow many fruits and veggies and keep chickens, bunnies, and cows.
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