TIL that “organic cows”in the US can’t be given antibiotics. If they are, they are never “organic”, ever again.
In the EU and Canada, farmers aren’t allowed to sell the milk until there’s no sign of antibiotics.
Personally, I’d prefer if an animal was correctly treated for any ailment they might be suffering from. And antibiotics might be the correct course of action. Feeding antibiotics to healthy animals in their feed is ridiculously irresponsible, however.
How do you microdose veganism? Try eating less meat and dairy products. Go meat free once or twice a week. There are plenty of delicious vegan meals to be made, and you won’t miss the meat.
In the follow-up podcast mentioned, they guide the listener through how someone who wants to reduce animal suffering (but also still eat animals) might think through their dinner menu. They recommended eating good quality beef, which surprised me, but given how prevalent battery hens are, it might be easier to discover if a cow was grass fed.
We’re spoiled in Ireland. Most cows are grass fed, and the EU has laws regarding how densely packed chickens can be. EU MPs voted in favour of banning caged farming by 2027 after intense lobbying by activists.
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@donncha it tough, I think beef is the most cruelty free form of meat, but also the most environmentally destructiveI wish I had the energy and skills to go veganI was going to give that episode a skip, but I’ll be tuning in now!
@tal Yeah, the environmental aspect surprised me about her answer. And health too. Chicken is easier to digest and easier to be good for you compared to beef.We get vegan and vegetarian dishes from HelloFresh. We stopped for a while and I used the recipes to buy my own ingredients for dinner. Take a look at https://www.hellofresh.ie/recipes 🙂
@donncha I don't know about the US but here regular medicines including antibiotics are permitted when deemed essential, generally with veterinary supervision, and detailed records must be kept. The withholding periods are longer than on commercial farms. "In the EU and Canada, farmers aren’t allowed to milk the cow until the antibiotic has passed through their body." No, the cow is milked as normal however the milk is disposed of and does not enter the food chain.
@psneeze Good point about the disposing of the tainted milk. I'll edit the post to make that clear.
@donncha doh! I turned it on and promptly fell asleep. I’ll try again tomorrow!I’ve just had a look at Hello Fresh there and it looks interesting, might do like you and just do it for a while. Spice things up and learn some new recipes.