As a student of history I’ve long understood that homo sapiens are omnivores. As I peer back into my own past I remember buying gurnard (fish that disappeared from the chip shop menu 40-50 years ago,) chuck steak and shin of beef (the former now used in burgers, the latter almost unheard of but great in curries,) offal of all descriptions (try finding anything other than chicken liver these days) and many other cheap cuts.
Today the supermarket choices are limited at best and even the local butchers struggle to get people to buy into the idea of ‘nose to tail’ meat.
Some British farmers are pushing back, promoting the idea of regenerative farming where, as far as possible, inputs are matched to outputs. I like that idea, especially in the context of sustainability. Why when all around we’re told that animal farts are a huge contributor to CO2 and methane emissions?
Most recently, and on the eve of COP26, the CEO of my main supplier offered a perspective on farming and climate change that I find refreshing. In his latest newsletter he says:
It happens a lot that someone will say to me, “don’t you know meat is bad for the climate?” And, most of the time, these offenders crop up in conversation. I call it the ‘cowspiracy-effect,’ after the Netflix documentary about destructive American beef farming…does our government understand the value of our native livestock? I’m not so sure they do. While cattle are central to the culture and economy of the new world, the origin of much of the world’s herds are British. The Dales are an excellent place to spy our heritage breeds grazing on pasture, though it needn’t be Yorkshire; it could be pastures scattered across these isles.
He would say that wouldn’t he but there is more:
These heritage breeds have been 'improved' by selective breeding for centuries in these isles to turn grass into meat. The meat wasn't consumed often; the land could only support so many animals of course. Yet when the settlers crossed the oceans to find millions of acres of pristine grasslands, they set their herds and flocks loose. The American diet has never recovered.
Today, the process of raising beef in these countries is about as far removed from the humble Dales farm as you can imagine. The scale is unimaginable and it's increasingly automated - a chilling way of raising livestock. This style of farming has nothing to do with the seasons or doing things in balance with the environment. Feedlot cows, aliens in their foreign ecology, are fattened on soya and the Amazon is burning to grow this.
Not just the Amazon but you get the point. And those who promote plant based alternatives as the only way forward don’t get a pass:
When I'm told plant-based diets are the only solution, I am increasingly appalled. The best-selling vegan recipe books in this country are awash with ingredients that are imported from the tropics. There's nothing seasonal about these diets, or in many cases of hyper-processed foods, nutritious.
Our intrepid meat promoter isn’t unrealistic or blind to the many critiques of meat production. Instead, he makes the point that with polarised, often binary views and a media narrative that seeks to put the blame on meat producers without understanding the context of a whole cow, sheep or pig, consumers lose out on the potential to help keep prices reasonable by relearning the value of consuming the whole carcass rather than limiting ourselves to choice cuts with the rest going to…dog food or landfill. He is right.
I’m blessed to live in a part of the U.K. where we have farmers on our doorstep who are actively pursuing regenerative farming techniques. The meat from those sources is of consistently excellent quality - check the awesome cote de boeuf at the top of this post. Their meat cooks well and tastes of what it’s supposed to be without requiring a shit ton of herbs and spices to mask or put flavour into a mediocre product. But - it’s expensive, even by our 2021 price inflated standards. It’s a price I am willing to pay because it contributes towards ensuring the survival of the best producers who, in a global context, help provide better standards of food and its production by preserving and improving world class breeds.
Farmers like my supplier are doing their best to bring back the kind of variety with which I grew up and which, to my mind, makes cooking far more interesting than the almost drive by approach with which time starved families are faced. It doesn’t have to be that way.
The other evening I mentioned that I’d spent a satisfying evening preparing a chicken curry, dhal makhani and the dough for hand made naans for the following day People seemed to like that.
It takes time, sure. But the result was deemed well worth it by my harshest critic. But I could have equally thrown together a slow cooked cheap cut of meat with fresh veggies and simply left it to do its thing with just as good results.
It takes effort to seek out great suppliers. It takes time to assemble a wholesome meal. But these are times that can be shared with others. In that sense I am grateful to my mother who taught me the basics of cooking over a rudimentary stove, a tiny worktop and no freezer. Are we giving the future generation that same education or defaulting to Deliveroo, Just Eat and the many other convenience providers?
I get that time saved through these services is valuable since time is the one thing none of us can buy back. But what do you do with that time? Stare at your phone or, like me, do you prefer to invest time learning how best to feed yourself and others in a way that’s sustainable?
P.S.; for those thinking he talks a great game but shows us one of the most expensive cuts - where’s his liver and bacon casserole? That comes just as soon as I cut up some more of my home cured bacon.
P.P.S.: The Spectator has a great article on this topic that includes links to useful resources.