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| The Compassionate Carnivore: Or, How to Keep Animals Happy, Save Old MacDonald's Farm, Reduce Your Hoofprint, and Still Eat Meat | 
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 8 reviews)
Sales Rank: 140203
Category: Book
Author: Catherine Friend
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Studio: Da Capo Press
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
Label: Da Capo Press
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1st Da Capo Press Ed
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 291
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.2
ISBN: 1600940072
Dewey Decimal Number: 641.36
EAN: 9781600940071
ASIN: 1600940072
Publication Date: April 21, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
For most of her life, Catherine Friend was a carnivore who preferred not to consider where the meat on her plate came from?beef didn?t have a face, chicken didn?t have a personality, and pork certainly shouldn?t have feelings. But Friend?s attitude began to change after she and her partner bought a farm and began raising sheep for meat. Friend?s ensuing odyssey through the world of livestock and farming is a journey that offers critical insights?for omnivores and herbivores alike?into how our meat is raised, how we buy it and from whom, and why change is desirable and possible. From a distressing lesson about her favorite Minnesota State Fair food (pork-chop-on-a-stick) to the surprising gratitude that came from eating an animal she?d raised and loved, Friend takes us on a wild and woolly ride through her small farm (with several brief detours into life on factory farms), along the way raising questions such as: What are the differences between factory, conventional, sustainable, and organic farms, and more importantly, why do we need to understand those differences? What do all those labels?from organic to local to grass fed and pasture raised?really mean? If you?re buying from a small farmer, what are the key questions to ask? How do you find that small farmer, and what?s the best way to help her help you? In the same witty and warm style that characterized her memoir Hit by a Farm, Friend uses her perspective as a sustainable farmer and carnivore to consider meat animals? quality of life?while still supporting the choice to eat meat. Regardless of whether you eat meat once a day, once a week, or once a year, your perspective of what goes on your plate?and in your mouth?will never be the same.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
 Insightful read! August 5, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was a meat-eater, then went to a ranch where I helped with the birthing of baby lambs (which were so sweet and innocent) and immediately gave up meat... for a year. After 12 long months of meat-free meals, I caved in -my body really craved the protein you can really only find in animal meat, so now I'm trying to find a happy balance between being a vegetarian and being a "compassionate carnivore". This book really gives great insight into finding that balance - a great read for anyone who struggles with the decision to eat, or not to eat meat.
 Compassionate carnivore is no Friend of animals July 29, 2008
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
In "Compassionate Carnivore," Catherine Friend offers an appalling Orwellean misrepresentation of compassion.
The definition of compassion includes "a feeling of deep sympathy for another's suffering." How can Friend (or any would-be "compassionate carnivore") seriously claim to be deeply sympathetic with an animal's suffering while acting as the cause and perpetrator of that suffering?
Friend's book title includes the phrase, "keep animals happy."
How happy are these animals as they are suspended by their hoofs and have their throats slit?
The word "humane" tossed in many times by Friend. Humane means to act with "tenderness, compassion and sympathy for ... animals." How tender is the edge of the meat processor's knife? How compassionate is the theft of a veal calf from the nurturing utter of his loving mother? How much sympathy is involved in the rape of female animals through artificial insemination?
Friend egregiously claimed that animals are here for one purpose: to feed us. No they are not. Animals, as they think and feel, have purposes of their own. The purpose of a pig is to root for food, make soft beds of dry leaves or straw, and to seek the company of other pigs. The intention of a meat-eating human toward an animal, and the purpose of an animal herself, are two entirely different matters that should not be confused.
Friend excused animal agriculture based on a farmer's drive to be productive with that land. Agricultural productivity does not require killing animals. When farmers begin to look beyond their own fence line and consider the productivity of the land as well as the best interests of society and the planet there will be a turning away from animal production. To excuse slaughter for the sake of profit places Friend in the same ethical basin as Jim Perdue.
Friend asserts that the "lives of the animals are worthy of our consideration." Should she ever express consideration for my life, I'll be certain to cover my throat in fear of the coming assault.
It is a naive false hope that pastured-based farming is possible as a society-wide sustainable solution to increasing food production demands and the environmental devastation caused by livestock. When considered objectively from a standpoint of resources, psuedo-humane meat can never be more than a boutique product for a few elite consumers. It is not a path for true sustainability for a nation of 300 million people or a planet of six billion.
Sincerely,
Jim Van Alstine, President
Mid-Hudson Vegetarian Society
 The Compassionate Carnivore July 25, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is a difficult book to review and, in a way, a difficult one to read. Catherine Friend is an extremely good writer and all of her previous books I rated with a top score and sometimes wished there was some way to add to that. This one falls short of the books that preceded it.
It is almost like there are two books; perhaps written by different authors, or at least, one author in two frames of mind. This author has always shown special abilities to express emotion and project her sense of humor. The first half of this book has an angry tone, so angry that any other emotions find it hard to show through. The tone softens in the second half and we again see the great writing strengths of Catherine Friend. It reminds one about the old story of how to speak to a mule: Strike him hard with a two-by-four to get his attention and then speak in his ear. Obviously, I am that mule and Friend got my attention with the first part of this book. After that, reading it became comfortable.
The fundamental message of the book is that while there are good reasons why a person might choose not to be a vegetarian; those who eat meat should respect the animals that provided that food and insist that the growers treat the animals with compassion. Further, carnivore humans should make sure the food with which they nourish themselves is of the best possible quality.
For several decades, big corporations have taken an increasingly greater share of growing food animals and processing the meat. They have applied factory methods that often mistreat the animals; or, if not mistreating them by illegal means, placing a low priority on the animal's well-being. In further maximizing their bottom line, they load up the animals with growth hormones that are not beneficial to the humans eating the meat. The food the animals get is selected to maximize growth and does little to enhance the flavor when the food reaches the plate. The big meat processors also apply factory methods to maximize throughput and profit.
Friend believes that animals need room to roam and they should get food that is good for their health - food that they would eat naturally. Processors of meat animals need to maximize sanitary conditions and place a highest priority on serving the needs of the people who eat the meat. This applies equally to the middlemen who are often in the chain between the pasture and the plate.
The greatest burden is on me and thee, the people who buy the meat with the intent of eating it or feeding it to our family and guests. The corporations will respond to the short-term profit greed of their stockholders. It is up to us, the purchasers of food to see to the quality of the food on our tables. That requires us to think, to learn, to exert a little more effort. We need to inform ourselves. This book starts that process and provides lots of references. We need to learn about the farmer growing our meat products. We need to know about the people who stand between the pasture and the plate. That requires new habits, but it is possible. Many people do it today. The more that do, the more influence they will have on the people providing the food we eat.
It means getting food from farmers we know or whom we have good reason to believe treat their animals right. It means knowing who kills the animal, cuts the carcass, wraps the meat, and cares for it until we buy it. That usually means getting meat that comes from smaller farm operations that send their meat direct to a processor that we know takes the utmost care in their work. If we buy the meat directly from the farmer or the processor, so much the better. If not, we need to know what happens between the processor and the vendor from whom we buy. In general, it means foregoing much of the fast food available in stores and restaurants. It even means that we will probably prepare more of our food ourselves. People who eat out in restaurants need to be good consumers; asking questions and taking care to make the best choices possible. And, yes, we may have to pay a little more for raw ingredients, but certainly not what the same nutrition costs from a fast-food source. Read "The Compassionate Carnivore" to understand what all this means and the way to do it without it being too hard on the pocketbook or the time budget.
The writer is herself a meat grower. She knows that the animals grown on her farm are treated right. She and her partner are good stewards of their land. They deliver their animals direct to a processor they know personally. The person who is going to put the meat on the table has often bought it directly from Friend and her partner, either before it went to the processor or shortly afterward. Friend knows that what goes on the plate is good nutrition and excellent quality. She takes pride in that.
The writer faces one problem to which there is no solution and which leaves her book slightly open-ended. That is the question of standards by which to judge the farmer and the processor. Most grocery stores in cities of any size will have an "organic foods" section. Governments and organizations have set standards which give that label some meaning. Unfortunately, there is so much red tape involved in raising organic foods and delivering it to the grocery shelf that many small farm operations can't afford to participate. Friend herself is not able to label the meat they sell as "organic." The truth is that her meat, and a lot of the meat available, is produced to criterion that exceeds "organic" in many respects, but for which there are no enforced standards. It isn't really a problem for us if we inform themselves ("The Compassionate Carnivore" provides a good start), find out where the food we serve comes from, and buy only meat that is up to OUR standards.
If you can get through the first half of this book without crying or becoming more angry than the author herself, you will enjoy the second half. I bet that you will end up eating healthier and feeling better about yourself as a result.
Is there such a thing? July 22, 2008
2 out of 7 found this review helpful
No, there is no such thing as a compassionate carnivore, unless your a true carnivore - say a tiger or a dog. Humans were not designed to eat meat which is evident in the health of most Americans - so this statement is an oxymoron, without a doubt. It's along the same lines of 'Humane Meat' - of which there is no such thing - animals are still shipped to slaughterhouses in crowded trucks dying without food or water, to be hung upside down by one leg, which is usually broken due to their exhaustive struggle to stay alive, only to have their throats slit while still alive, and screaming the entire time this is going on in complete and evident protest. Killing is wrong.
It is this kind of book that tries to take the guilt out of 'eating another living, breathing, feeling, sentient being's flesh' and this is morally wrong, ethically wrong and completely barbaric.
Thou shall not kill does not apply to only humans, and it's frustrating to those of us who feel that killing and eating animals is unjust, and those of us who try to spread peace. Killing them, dominating them and forcing them to die without any choice of their own is wrong. If you gave an animal on a factory farm, a small farm or your pet dog a choice to live or to die, for us to eat, I guarantee you, without any hesitation - they would choose life.
Slavery was abolished - and eventually so will killing animals. It's just taking most of the population longer to realize that we ourselves or our planet will never have peace until we stop killing, period.
Bridging The Gap May 27, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I am a 37yo barely-above-ignorant carnivore, engaged to a 27yo understanding vegetarian... a never-eaten-meat lifer whose vegetarian roots go back two generations. I read this book because I was looking for a non-scientific text to help me develop an approach that would make us both happy (not that we weren't already, but clearly I could be more sympathetic to her preferences as she has been with mine). Catherine Friend's book has helped bridge the gap in my understanding and equipped me to be compassionate not only to animals, but to my fiance as well. I recommend this book to anyone interested in developing a sense of responsibility where the consumption of meat is concerned. My life, my fiance's life, and the lives of the animals I choose to eat are better for it.
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