Wonderful magical animal
Homer: What about bacon?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Ham?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Pork chops?
Lisa: Dad! Those all come from the same animal!
Homer: [chuckles] Yeah, right, Lisa. A wonderful, magical animal. …
Mmm. TV from home. This afternoon, Country Canada (CBC) carried a short documentary on changes occuring in agriculture on the Island. A story that wasn’t about potatoes! Apart from the fun of seeing a lad I hadn’t run across in the three decades since we roamed around Memorial Hall, it was an insight into how the farmer is literally caught between a rock and a hard place all the time.
I’m a consumer who always appreciates a reduction in my costs. Cheap is better. But, the guy who has to care for, fatten up for market and then sell off those magical animals is always at the mercy of my willingness to pay. The supermarkets never take a loss. He does. That pig has a fixed price attached, as surely as the ear has a tag.
If I want to switch to “organic meat” which has clear benefits attached, I am forced to adjust my price point. Nothing is free. The risk is borne by the farmer who will have to invest in a gamble that may not “bring home the bacon”. The pork industry is constantly under pressure; from the environmental police that forget that sh*t is a natural biproduct. From the pressure to increase the “crop” by crowding more animals into a growth space. From the meatpacking plant that wants its share of the profits, fair or not. From the retailer that must move product. From me – I won’t pay a filet mignon price for loin chops.
The farmer who must keep his barns locked down against the risk of disease is doing more than his share to keep me healthy… which reminds me; it’s time to start supper.
