Page 61 - SilverLakes_Issue 6_2022

ADVERTORIAL

WHY THE STORY OF THE MEAT

YOU EAT IS IMPORTANT

t is hard to defend being a meat eater
to those who graphically describe the
Iinhumane treatment animals suffer on
the way to your plate.

But all that falls away if the animals have
had a life worth living and a humane end.

Justine Reardon’s remarkable story of
how she transformed herself from a third
generation fashion designer, cutting and
trimming material for dressing Joburg’s
young social set, to cutting and trimming
meat, has a foundation in ethics and
healthy living.

According to Justine, raising the bar for
the humane treatment of animals in the
food system began in 1965 when Irish
zoologist Francis Brambell researched
a basic set of standards for all animals
under human control. He recommended
five freedoms.

These are the Five Freedoms that have
since been developed and adopted by
organisations and authorities in Europe
and the USA:
• Freedom from hunger or thirst
• Freedom from discomfort
• Freedom from pain, injury or disease
• Freedom to express normal behaviour Photo by Ronnie Khan on Unsplash
• Freedom from fear and distress

These are not only good for the animals
destined for the table, they are good for
the people consuming the meat. “At the
butchery where I worked in Morningside,
you could tell the difference when an they are vague and open to interpretation. In line with this, Justine believes that the
animal was slaughtered whilst in a fit of So while factory farms might provide the suppliers to the Food Club she is forming
adrenalin-induced fear. The adrenalin appropriate facilities, they barely consider should be moving toward providing animals
changes the colour and smell of the meat the animals’ well-being. with a ‘life worth living’.
and it is much tougher,” says Justine.
The USA-based Humane League points As the Humane League puts it, in addition
But the Five Freedoms are a problem. out that the Five Freedoms minimise the to providing the essentials they need to
They lead to ‘humane washing’ through negative but they do not promote the live, farms that rear animals should do their
the unethical practice of marketing with positive and it leads to animals surviving best to give animals positive experiences
misleading claims. Their weakness is rather than thriving. during their lives.

INTRAMUROS JULY 2022 | 59