“Eating Animals” by Jonathan Safran Foer: A Book Review

I am a city girl. Sure, I was born in Maine and raised in the Massachusetts suburbs, but I am a city girl in heart, spirit and shopping habits.

The fact that I’m as passionate about food politics as I am now is probably pretty surprising to the people who have known me for a while, because I’ve made myself out to be a cosmopolitan, fashion-obsessed, celebrity gossip-supporting “Sex in the City” type of girl.

I mean, I am the one who — during last year’s Healthy Living Summit — was inspired to buy the domain “http://BoozeAndShooze.com because of a love for fruity drinks and fabulous footwear.

Not exactly the takeaway the event organizers probably intended.

But in recent years, as I’ve journeyed from unhealthy, unhappy and uneducated omnivore to healthy, happy vegetarian, I’ve started to listen. And read. And ask. And engage. I’ve been on a hunt — one that continues today — for the balance between eating ethically and enjoying food unconsciously.

I’ve come to believe very strongly in the ideals of family farming, and am disgusted by the factory farming that provides an overwhelming majority of the meat and poultry products that Americans eat.

For me, the journey has been both enlightening and entertaining. And the single most impactful source of enlightenment for me has been reading “Eating Animals” by author Jonathan Safran Foer.

Here’s the official summary:

Like many young Americans, Jonathan Safran Foer spent much of his teenage and college years oscillating between enthusiastic carnivore and occasional vegetarian. As he became a husband, and then a father, the moral dimensions of eating became increasingly important to him. Faced with the prospect of being unable to explain why we eat some animals and not others, Foer set out to explore the origins of many eating traditions and the fictions involved with creating them.

Traveling to the darkest corners of our dining habits, Foer raises the unspoken question behind every fish we eat, every chicken we fry, and every burger we grill. Part memoir and part investigative report, Eating Animals is a book that, in the words of the Los Angeles Times, places Jonathan Safran Foer “at the table with our greatest philosophers.”

(And, my official disclosure: When I heard about this book, I contacted the publisher and asked for a review copy. I made it clear that IF I chose to read the book and IF I chose to post a review, it would be completely honest. The publisher enthusiastically agreed and sent me a review copy, which I did not pay for.)

Foer takes a stunningly honest look at factory farming, and concludes — both scientifically, morally and personally — that as an industry, factory farming is not only unsustainable, it leads to inhumane, unhealthy, environmentally ruinous practices and products. I thought I had a pretty clear idea of what went into farming, and rationalized that killing animals for food may not be the prettiest thing, but it provided a service. That is, to feed us.

But after reading this book (which, by the way, includes some really compelling insight from almost everyone with a stake in the argument including farmers, slaughterhouse owners, PETA representatives and politicians) I was ashamed of myself, and ashamed at my previous willingness to think that simply shopping at Whole Foods and swearing off junk food somehow made up for the horrifying and inhumane practices at factory farms across America. At one point, I actually got lightheaded after reading the accounts of anonymous workers from a slaughterhouse — accounts in which they detailed the absolutely awful (and common!) behavior on the killing floor.

Listen, I’m not really militant about anything, when it comes to eating. If you want to eat meat, that’s cool. Vegan? Rock on. There’s room for all of us, and I truly believe that having a conversation about these issues is as important as our individual decisions.

I wouldn’t want you to tell me what to wear every day, or what TV shows to watch. I’m not going to tell YOU what to eat, or how to do it.

But I will urge, beg and plead… become involved with your food.

If, after learning about the treatment of livestock and other animals raised for food, you feel confident in your choices, you’re OK in my book. If, after researching, you are moved to make some changes but not to drastically alter your dietary habits (become a vegan, etc.), that’s a pretty big step already. And as long as you’re able to eat your meals feeling some type of connection to the journey the animals and farmers made to provide it to you, you’re part of the solution.

I give “Eating Animals” by Jonathan Safran Foer two very enthusiastic thumbs up, and invite you to give it a browse. If you do, let me know. Tell me how it affected you, if at all, and what takeaways you made.

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite pictures — pretty much the only time I’ve ever been this close to a farm animal outside of the zoo. It was taken at my aunt Patti‘s Seattle-area house, and was one of the first “a ha” moments I had when it came to farms, and the difference between family and factory.

P.S. There are a ton of resources on the “Eating Animals” Web site: http://eatinganimals.com — it’s a great start if you want to learn more about his book, or get information about the farms he profiled that may be better choices if you do choose to eat meal.