Meat Industry free essay sample

There is a huge controversy on eating meat. Some people argue its not taboo for a number of reasons and others object it is. Eating meat is as natural as breathing and if produced properly, morally adequate. Meat has been apart of our culture for over hundreds of years. The consumption of meat products has been encased in our DNA since the very beginning of human life. The meat industry contributes dollars annually to the United States’ economy. It produces tons of jobs for everyday American citizens. Meat also is a big part of keeping people healthy. It provides us with certain nutrients the body needs. Being a carnivore is not a bad thing. Meat has been a part of our culture for as far back in time as we can research. It is used in celebration and in times of remembrance of where we came from. When the pilgrims found America, they rejoiced by cooking a fat, juicy turkey for dinner. We will write a custom essay sample on Meat Industry or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page From that day on, once a year, we have celebrated the founding of our forefathers. Therefore the holiday of Thanksgiving was created. So that we could never forget where we truly came from. Eating meat dates all the way back to the caveman times. Its been engraved in our culture for so long that it is almost impossible to eliminate. It brings the family together at the dinner table. Which is where people celebrate a good, hard day’s work; not allowing them to forget where and whom they came from. Belcher 2 Economically the meat industry brings in tons of revenue for the United States and promotes jobs for the country’s citizens. The article â€Å"Meat and poultry industry significant for US economy,â€Å" posted on zootecnicainternational.com, states that â€Å"the meat and poultry industry directly employs 1. 8 million people, paying $45. 5 million in wages and benefits. † The article goes on to prove how â€Å"meat-eating† is vital in our economy. The article tells us how approximately â€Å"524,000 people have jobs from the production of meat and that 1,227,600 employees’ retail depends on the sale of meat products to the public. † The growth of the meat industry will provide opportunities for new generations to enter and compose new ideas. New ideas can mean more money; resulting in a more efficient economy in America. There are others who argue that eating meat is morally wrong and is a main cause for global warming. In the article â€Å" The Carnivore’s Dilemma,â€Å" Nicolette Hahn Niman states that â€Å"Farm factories put out numerous amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxides† (693 Niham). â€Å"Storing the animal’s waste in giant lagoons, and cutting down forests to grow crops to feed them is causing substantial greenhouse gases in the atmosphere†(693 Niham) However, one could objectify to these statements of how meat production is the cause of global warming. Soybean production is major factor in deforestation. â€Å"In Brazil, there is as much as 70 percent of the cultures land cleared to grow soybeans,â€Å" Niman tells the reader(693). He explains how â€Å" Over half of Brazil’s soy harvest is controlled by a handful of international agribusiness companies, which ship it all over the world for animal feed and food products†(693 Niham). The industrial process of Belcher 3 these products is a major cause in global warming. Vegetarians rely on soybeans to receive the protein needed to maintain a healthy balance in the body. Meat eaters don’t have to participate in this emission process because there are small, local farms available. â€Å"These farmers have scant connection to carbon dioxide emissions because they keep their animals outdoors on pastures and make little use of machinery†(693 Niham). Cattle are reported of being prime culprits in methane production, however, research has found ways to greatly reduce this emission. â€Å" Much of the problem arises when livestock eat poor-quality forages, throwing their digestive system off balance†(694 Niham). This can be avoided by making changes in the animals diet. Nitrous oxide emissions is a major problem that seems to be blamed on farming. â€Å"More than three-quarters of this emission is from manmade fertilizers†(694 Niham). â€Å"Thus, you can reduce the emission of nitrous oxide by buying meat and dairy products from animals that were not fed fertilized crops- in other words, from animals raised on grass or raised organically,† Niham reports (694). Niham declares that â€Å" In contrast to factory farming, well-managed, non-industrialized animal farming actually can minimize greenhouse gases and can even benefit the environment†(694). So by proper farming methods carnivores can eat meat without causing greenhouse gases to be put into the atmosphere. Hereby, not causing harm to the environment. â€Å"When it comes to the moral side of the issue, many believe that eating â€Å"nose to tail† is acceptable. â€Å" It is a way of respecting an animal by not wasting a single part of it† Laurel Gladden states in her article â€Å"The Ethical Epicure; Another Look at Meat†(698). Meat is essential to the health of the human body. It has proteins your body can Belcher 4 not produce without the consumption of certain foods such as meat products. It contains amino acids your body needs to build muscle tissue, manufacture antibodies, and replace  blood cells. There are 20 amino acids in proteins but the body can only produce 11 of them. The other nine amino acids are received by the consumption of meat and other foods devoured daily. These nine are know as â€Å"essential amino acids,† which means they are very important to the anatomy and physiology of the human body. Meat happens to be protein-rich food that â€Å"supplies the essential amino acids needed for good health. † Meat also supplies the subject with minerals that support the optimal functioning of cells and tissues (healthyeating. sfgate. com/meat-important). Meat is an important source of zinc and iron. Therefore, meat is vital to human’s everyday life and health. In completion the meat industry is a critical part of life. If the world became vegetarian or vegan, it would be in dire need of money and jobs for all the people who would become unemployed from this action. Culture would be nothing as we know it today. The health problems would skyrocket higher than anyone has ever seen before. Eating meat is important and without it life would simply be meaningless and miserable from all the issues caused from the extinction of â€Å"eating-meat. †