Really, not a high horse (I don’t even own one…yet)
Posted on June 15, 2007 - Filed Under Activism, animals, chicken feed
Today I learned two things about chickens:
- The will eat whole beets.
- They whole-heartedly defy the rule “Never eat something bigger than your head.”
All that was left of the gigantic beet from yesterday was it’s top with a few straggly purple stems attached. I wonder if eating lots of beets will result in purple eggs. That would be handy for Easter.
Our chickens are getting quite a variety in their diet as we attempt to overcome the obstacle of overly processed chicken feeds (think current pet food scare) and genetically modified ingredients like corn (something like 85% of corn produced is genetically modified?), soybean, alfalfa, etc. The bulk of most chicken feeds (homemade or store bought) is corn and/or soybean. Around here, there is very little of anything grown without the help of gmo’s and chemicals. I’ve found places on the internet, but they’re usually based on the other side of the country, expensive to buy and expensive to ship.
This reality, combined with the book (Oryx & Crake by Margaret Atwood) I just finished about a world destroyed by genetic engineering (a little too close to reality) really made me think about how scary food is today. Forget processed foods, even trying to eat healthy and natural via many fresh vegetables, fruits and grains is difficult considering they:
- very possibly come from a seed that has been genetically modified to grow only if doused in chemicals (both seed and chemical conveniently available from the same mega-monster company) and is non-renewable so you have to buy new seed every year (again, same company)
- are genetically modified in other ways, for our own good (better tasting, more nutrients)
- are simply doused in chemicals to help them grow or to kill off pests and weeds.
There is no way of knowing if a product is gmo or what chemicals are used since companies are not required to label such inconsequential details. Then there’s the further unknown effects of the modified foods on a body (yours or that of the chicken you’re now eating), the chemical run-off into the soil and water, the depletion of nutrients in the soil and therefore the food.
It all comes down to money, greed, power, control, arrogance, convenience, oh and patents. These companies actually patent their seeds. And then have the gall to sue farmers when their plant cross-pollinates with other farmer’s plants naturally (ironically enough) via the wind, birds, bees. Seriously, Google Monsanto vs. Schmeiser for just one of many ridiculous cases. It could soon be that all of these vegetables and grains become gmo through naturally occurring cross-pollination. And then there’s the pending application by same company to patent the pig, which is a whole ‘nother absurd case of big business and man run amok.
Food (for humans and animals) is big business…mostly for the seed and chemical companies. No wonder farmers can’t stay afloat. What was once an honorable tradition of creating life-sustaining food mano a mano with soil, water and sun is now basically a life of indentured servitude hidden under the promise of a bigger and better life… but for whom?
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