Jonathan Safran Foer's Controversial New Book, Eating Animals

The Most Important Conversation in Our Lifetimes Might Just Begin with Jonathan Safran Foer's Latest Book

Over the next weeks Huffington Post will feature a diverse range of responses to Jonathan Safran Foer's controversial new work of non-fiction, Eating Animals. But these aren't your usual book reviews. They are the start of a conversation that some powerful people in agribusiness would rather we not have.

Imagine that tomorrow scientists report that a single action, something that most of us do every day, was discovered to be the leading human cause of global warming. And one of the top two or three causes of every other major environmental problem at the local and global level. Even more, this same action appears to have been a decisive factor in the development of the H1N1 "swine flu" and continues to stimulate the growth of pathogens resistant to antimicrobial drugs. Imagine further that this action causes billions of farmed animals annually to suffer in ways that virtually all Americans say should be illegal. And, finally, that this action has lead to the decimation of American farm communities from North Carolina to central California.

This is real. It is happening. And all these facts about the effects of eating factory farmed animals are thoroughly documented in Foer's new book.

Eating Animals is part personal journey, part modern muckraking and a surprisingly candid and empathetic book on food. Foer doesn't preach but instead invites us to have a conversation with family farmers and factory farmers, animal activists and slaughterhouse workers. His book is important not because he has all the answers (he often acknowledges his own uncertainty), but because he asks the right questions and makes it impossible for us not to ask them too.

There is little dispute that our current way of eating animals sits at the intersection of some of the most pressing problems in America. And there is also little dispute that eating animals is deeply rooted in culture, bound to our national traditions (the Thanksgiving turkey, the Christmas ham), and can be a source of a great deal of human pleasure. Foer's rare accomplishment is that he flinches from neither the complexities of meat's attraction nor the realities about what, in the era of factory farming, the chickens on our plate do to the world in which we live.

It's time we have a more intelligent and reasonable discussion about the state of animal agriculture. And it's time that vegetarian advocates and omnivores who simply want animals and the environment treated with basic dignity insist that we focus our national discussion of food on a challenge we all can agree about: transforming the factory farms that now produce 99 out every 100 farmed animals in America.

Foer's Eating Animals can help open that discussion. In fact, says Natalie Portman in a revealing review that will be posted October 27, it already has. Stay tuned.

Aaron Gross is the founder of Farm Forward, a nonprofit that promotes more humane, sustainable animal agriculture and plant-based diets.

 

Comments

[peskime]

Your argument is disingenuous. You will say anything to avoid the fact that your lifestyle choice causes pain and suffering to sentient beings. Blather on all you like but a brussel sprout is not the same as a cow.
Think of that next time you pile bacon and eggs onto your plate.

[ottabox]

Would the series benefit perhaps from a essay on action steps people can take? When awareness is raised a person can feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problem. One can one person do? Part of the dialogue in the comments section was about what action people would take. A final essay that focuses on how to take action might be valuable to those who feel frustrated with problem but are confused about what they can do.

[Kimelman-Block]

I am very driven by the horrific issues with factory farming that are brought up in this book. Industrial animal production is toxic to our environment, our health (ie: E.coli), and our values. All this on top of being completely inhumane. The problem is factory animal production, not meat consumption. All these issues do not have only one solution (vegetarianism). It is this reasoning that led me to start a kosher, non-industrial, grass-fed meat business (KOL Foods). It is a very needed as the kosher meat business is virtually entirely industrial - even the kosher organic chicken producers are industrial. If you are interested in learning more about these issues, I have a blog (www.kolfoods.blogspot.com). And one more FYI... we are having a pasture-raised turkey sale and raffle until Nov. 3 (go to www.kolfoods.com).

[ottabox]

The “Eating Animals” series on Huffington Post would benefit from having one part of series address the issue of parenting and the slate cleansing properties of going vegetarian before a child is born. Perhaps you could get the author himself contribute on this issue.

Foer writes from the perspective of a man beginning fatherhood. What choices will he make to assure the best for his child? Think about it: A child raised without a meat worldview is not going to "suffer" from the problems associated with going meatless. True, meat-eating parents will have to take a bullet. Foer writes compellingly that it would be worth it.
My children grew up without meat. My son as a teen has chosen to try meat here and there. That's to be expected. However, both have all the resources they need to live a vegetarian lifestyle without the trials and tribulations an adult would have in making a switch to this lifestyle.

One crux of the matter will be that parenting involves two people usually. One parent will resist (father most likely). A power struggle will ensue. How do you resolve that?

[vorpalmusic]

Let us also not forget that we evolved on a planet composed of multitudinous life forms who have survived the past four billion years by consuming each other, and that there is no other known way of sustaining life thus far. Humans and other hominids are and have been participating in this practice for millions of years; this is indisputable, despite "theories" about intestinal length and type of teeth which conveniently ignore the fact that we cook our food.

Yes, it is good to talk about ways that we can reduce the suffering of the world, but humans are not gods--we didn't create this system. Animals were eating animals before humans separated themselves from other apes, and some current human societies could not possibly exist without continuing to eat animals, i.e. Tibetan, Eskimo. Despite the claims of many vegans, there are some nutrients that are much more difficult to obtain with zero animal sources in the diet: Omega3 is one example.

All human endeavors destroy the environment, whether it be chopping down trees, digging up minerals, or eating animals. We should do everything we can to reduce the magnitude of it, but let's not delude ourselves: life sustains life by taking other life--this is an ancient and incontrovertible rule which well predates human activity.

[AnimalLover6]

factoryfarming.com

[vorpalmusic]

For the hundredth time, I am not talking about factory farming, and it's disingenuous when you link any meat eating to factory farming. If you have any valid, non-hysterical arguments against sparingly eating meat that was raised in humane conditions, now would be the time to give them.

For the record, the author of this very book we're discussing recognizes the value of traditional animal farming.

[vorpalmusic]

For all of you people endlessly crying that I have no link to back up my assertions, complain to the people who have prevented me from posting it 17 times. And learn to use google, really, it's like basic literacy at this point.

http://www.propeller.com/story/2008/12/17/mccartney-lashes-out-at-39meat-eating39-dalai-lama/

[AnimalLover6]

Aside from the fact that this "article" is basically an ad for the book, let's please remember that there have been people laboring over this issue for DECADES. In addition, there have been MANY excellent books written on the realities of factory farming in connection with the moral implications for humans. The authors, however, have not been celebritie­s--literar­y or otherwise. Hence, most have fallen into the black hole of publishing (except among those who have cared about this issue for a very long time). So while I appreciate the fact that Foer has written this book--because, in the end, it's about the animals most of all--I think it's a shame that it takes celebrity (and a great marketing team in league with HuffPo) to bring attention to this moral shame.

[plow]

Face it! We are the cancer on this earth. Remember when Mr. Smith tells Morpheus how we are not mamals and that we are the only fungus on the earth that destroys the earth we are standing on and then just get up and move to the next patch of land and commence destroying it too. It gave me a real creepy feeling because it felt so true.

[bobo]

I often read that raising cattle contributes to global warming. I didn't read all the comments and I wonder if someone could answer this? are the animals that we now raise to slaughter plus the current similiar animals that are roaming free equal/less/more than the number that used to roam freely before man's dominace of the planet.
Simply, what is today's total, wild or penned, versus numbers in the past.? Today's damage vs the past.
I'm all in favor of reducing crowded populations of all kinds on the planet, we need a two child policy. Try getting that past the pro-life public.

[daedalus43]

Where I live, we have a farmer's market. All eggs we sell are produced by "free range" chickens (raised in lots with a chicken coop). My neighbor raises free-range swine (iIdidn't even know for 5 years!), and we have beef cattle, sheep and goats being raised in pastures all around the area. Most of these animals are eating grass and weeds (and bugs) that are unfit for human consumption, with very little added grain. These animals are usually raised on land that is unfit for cash crops (corn, soybeans, vegetables, etc.).
Yes, factory farms exist. Yes, they are cruel to animals, use excessive amounts of grain and create pollution problems because of the concentrated waste and antibiotic use confinment requires. But, there are still plenty of farmers who pasture their animals and would be very happy selling directly to YOU. There are also plenty of small slaughter houses that will process your animal and hand you back small packages of steak, chops, etc. for your freezer.
It is unfair to assume all meat production is based on factory farming, that animals are always fed on land that might be used for other edible crops (with out the necessity of applying massive amounts of fertilizer). Why don't people use a little effort to get in contact with their local growers and discover where their food comes from and how they can support responsible agricultuure?

[dac253]

You should try killing a cow yourself instead of hiring hitmen to do your dirty work for you.

[Eugi]

Wow, this really made me think. I eat meat, but in my gut I agree with you. I think the sanitization of meat consumption has made more of us eat more meat, generally. However - when humans did have to chase down and slaughter animals to eat them...they did. In a way, domesticating and farming animals for food (industrial farms aside) is an accomplishment that followed and was made possible by generations upon generations catching and killing their meals.

What's inhumane is not the fact that animals are killed. It is that we make them suffer so much in life when at an industrial farm. (Just say freaking NO to foie gras, people). This is in turn made possible by lack of knowledge among many consumers (and a social stigma that says caring about this makes them crazy hippies) as well as overpopulation.

I hate to burst people's bubbles, but I think that a more appropriate and feasible way to address this problem is a) to not have more than 2 kids and b) make sure those two kids are educated. That way, humane animal farming can actually be enough in some communities. Octomom, I'm talking to you...

[Laserbeam]

I'm 46. I've been a vegetarian since I was 17. Trust me, it's a lot easier now than it was then! I couldn't live without my soy and tofu products. I recently learned I was lactose-intolerant, a new thing. Turns out we are born with a certain amount of tolerance to lactose and it dissipates as we grow older. The Asian doctor who told me this said Asians are born with far less of it than the rest of us. He asked me how many Asian teenagers I saw eating icre cream or drinking milk, and when I thought about it, realized I hadn't seen many - if any. But even being lactose intolerant, one can drink milk and eat cheese - anything that doesn't come from a cow. There is cow's milk that has had the lactose removed, too.

Carmelized tofu actually makes a great snack - even though my offspring isn't a vegetarian, that was the favorite sweet snack for years.

Give it a try, folks! It's SOOOOOOOOOOO easy anymore. Support your local farmer!

[Tiff1977]

It would be nice if we could go back to the days when people either had to grow or raise or hunt for their own food sources or trade with a neighbor.... We all knew where and how the animals were raised and slaughtered...
Everyone should by this point realize that almost everything that is mass market produced has major problems....
STOP EATING FAST FOOD and a ton of this industry will go away!!

If you can afford it, buy local and organic for your home!

[jones]

I lived in Klosters, Switzerland during the 70's as a kid and people ate meat but not very much. the meat was much better too. It was a treat rather than a right.

[mikroskopic]

I think it's ludicrous to argue that being vegan/veggie OR eating meat is unhealthy. You can create a diet that optimizes your personal health regardless if it's devoid of meat. Meat contains many things that are beneficial, so do vegetables. Vegan? Veg­etarian? O­mnivore? It doesn't make a difference. What matters is your knowledge of its origins. Unfortunately people are apathetic and unquestioning. If people knew where their food originated, maybe they would reevaluate their diet or become educated on the politics of factory farming.

The food industry is filled with questionable ingredients (Olestra? Trans-fat? high fructose corn-syrup?). Therefore, it's up to the consumer to become food literate. I wish it didn't have to be this way, but you can't trust an industry whose bottom-line is $$$. Whether your veggie or not, we can all agree this is a huge problem. Heart disease, obesity, diabetes, hypertension... We know the culprit and we know the cure, but it isn't in the form of a pill we can pop before bed. I'll probably die before McDonalds does, but any literature that educates people on the food industry is worth it, and maybe one day people will properly nourish their bodies again.

[Laserbeam]

I have found I am much healthier now that I eat very little manufactured food. Most of what I eat is prepared from scratch. It makes a big difference!

[LCRover001]

Maybe the best way to end all food based pollution on both side lies in Solent Green, recycling at its finest.

The Vegan movement/religion only sees what they want to see and they see nothing they do causes harm, but it does. They claim they do not kill, but they do, and to defend this killing they claim they do not kill sentient life; it is just more justification for their eating habits.

When it gets down to it people will eat the family pet to survive, and eventually each other, so why not in the march to stop any killing of any life form we just stop it all and start making Solent Green, it is the only way to stop all the pollution caused by farming of any kind for food. By converting the dead into a food supply we can then use all the land that was once used for food creation for fuel creation and end the use of oil as a fuel forever. By eating Solent Greens we can do away with the need for graveyards, do away with all pollution caused by farming for food and do away with the killing of anything for food, all we will have to do is take that step into the ultimate recycling program.

What say you vegans if your cause is to end the slaughter of animals for food and end pollution caused by farming for food surly this must be the final logical step?

[goldmanemma]

Not a bad idea; better yet, since there are about 5 billion too many of us, eating "on the hoof" as it were, might be more successful.

But, really, vegans are not your enemy- i know that we love our corporate masters, but we shouldn't be too afraid to look at their crimes.

[peskime]

This has to be one of the lamest arguments I have ever heard. There is EMPIRICAL evidence that eating meat harms not only the planet but it is BAD for you.

As to your assertion, that vegans kill for food,this is based upon what?

[LCRover001]

I guess those plants were never living things.

Vegans love to point out the pollution farming animals for food causes but conveniently overlook the pollution caused to raise their food.

How do you think those veggies get to the super market, they die. Vegans justify their killing with some lame excuse or another but in the end a life is taken.

All food production causes pollution even organic. All people kill something to sustain their own lives be it plant or animal. That is an inconvenient truth vegans and vegetarians overlook when pointing fingers.

To raise veggies or meat causes some type of harm to the environment.