This is the preparation I put together for my Covenant Group's discussion of Ethical Eating this month.
Definition: Ethical eating, like ethical living, is not about absolutes. It's about doing the best you're willing and able to do—and nurturing a will to keep doing better.—eatkind.net
Princeton University professor and founder of the animal liberation movement, Peter Singer, believes that if alternative means of survival exist, one ought to choose the option that does not cause unnecessary harm to animals.—Wikipedia
'' . . . in my first voyage from Boston . . . our people set about catching cod, and hauled up a great many. Hitherto I had stuck to my resolution of not eating animal food . . . But I had formerly been a great lover of fish and when this came hot out of the frying-pan, it smelt admirably well. I balanc'd some time between principle and inclination, till I recollected that, when the fish were opened, I saw smaller fish taken out of their stomachs; then thought I, 'If you eat one another, I don't see why we mayn't eat you.' ''—Benjamin Franklin
Technological advances and organizational changes affecting agrifood systems in recent years have been radical and rapid; the repercussions, however, will be felt for a long time to come and the consequences may be irreversible. Whether these changes be as specific as individual food production techniques or as broad as the effects of globalization, they have refocused attention on age-old human values and fundamental human rights, including the right to adequate—and safe—food.—fao.org
"Should I assume that I have a God-given right to access the entire earth's bounty, however far away some of its produce is grown? . . . If you send it halfway around the world before it is eaten, an organic food still may be 'good' for the consumer, but is it 'good' for the food system?"—ethnobotanist Gary Paul Nabhan in Coming Home to Eat: The Pleasures and Politics of Local Foods
Questions for Reflection
What does ethical eating mean to you?
Do you know how your eating habits effect your environment? The global environment? The economy? Your heath?
How do your food choices reflect your personal ethics? Do you have a code of ethics that helps you choose what foods to buy/eat?
When choosing food, do you focus more on taste, nutrition, production style (eg organic), locality, or something else?
Are you ever conflicted between ethical food choices and convenient, economic, nutritious, or tasty choices? Which factor usually wins out over the others?
I'll post my own thoughts, based on the above questions, as a comment. Please share yours as well. Maybe we can get a discussion going.
What does ethical eating mean to you? Trying to take into account the impact of my food choices on my larger environment. Buying and eating foods that are produced as locally and sustainably as possible. It means I read labels and look for certifications when I buy in a grocery store. It also means I prefer to get my food from local sources like a Farmer's Market, or farm stand, or by volunteering my time at a local educational garden in exchange for fresh, organic produce. It means pay a premium to buy non-homogenized, organic, relatively local milk in glass bottles & eggs from chickens raised on the farm I where I volunteer. These chickens not only have more outdoor space than indoor space (meaning they're eggs have lots of vitamin D and they can scratch for bugs), but they are also fed greens from the weeds on the farm (which increases the nutritional value of their eggs even more). Just because chickens can survive on a diet of corn doesn't mean that diet produces nutritionally optimal eggs. Or happy chickens. These chickens are happy. And they think that anyone who walks by is going to feed them--it's cute. Plus their eggs come in many different colors--shades of brown and even light blue, but I haven't seen a white one yet.
ReplyDeleteDo you know how your eating habits effect your environment? The global environment? The economy? Your heath? When I choose organic, I know that this reduces the poisonous chemicals used on my food. But it also sometimes means the food is shipped from across the country or overseas, so that increases the use of fossil fuels in transportation. Organic is often more expensive, but I'm not sure whether this is good or bad for the economy, just that it's hard on my pocket book. My health? I believe that organic food is better for me, but I don't know if I could measure the difference in terms of how frequently I get colds, for example.
How do your food choices reflect your personal ethics? Do you have a code of ethics that helps you choose what foods to buy/eat? This is a hard question for me. The short answer is yes, I have a code of ethics about food, but the longer answer is that the food choices came first and the code of ethics developed later. I was raised vegetarian, and so I default to vegetarian eating habits. But I didn't start thinking of vegetarianism in ethical terms until I was an adult. So maybe my ethics reflect my vegetarianism. :-)
When choosing food, do you focus more on taste, nutrition, production style (eg organic), locality, or something else? These days I look at a number of things. Price is a big one, but I weigh that against local/sustainable/organic food. Sometimes organic or local seems to be more important than price, sometimes price is the key factor. I'm not sure if there is a logic to it. GMO free is another big one for me, and one of the major reasons why I buy certified organic food whenever I can.
Are you ever conflicted between ethical food choices and convenient, economic, nutritious, or tasty choices? Which factor usually wins out over the others? As I said above, my bigest conflict is ethics vs. price, although I do think eithically produced food can also be nutritionally supirior, and cheap food isn't always as nutritious. I try very hard to balance my desire for nutritious, local, organic food againts my budget. Sometimes price wins, sometimes my ethics win.