The Annoying Vegan has become more annoyed today with what they see as the NSW Farmers getting on their high horse about the use of the words ‘meat’ and ‘milk’.
NSW Farmers are calling for clarification of the vocabulary for alternative proteins and they have submitted a motion to the Senate Standing Committee to review the use of meat vocabulary on plant-based products.
NSW Farmers’ are taking exception to plant-based foods having the word ‘meat’ written on plant-based products or even animal pictures on the packaging.
NSW Farmers president, James Jackson, says that at the end of the day ‘meat’ means ‘meat’, but the Annoying Vegan says that farmers also are not honest with their naming and packing.
It’s dead flesh
‘What they are selling is earthling flesh, and not only is it flesh, it’s dead flesh. They also show animal photos on their products – cutey cute lambs with long wiggly tails on the packaging of dead sheep, magestic looking cows of the packaging of milk – sometimes you will even see a mother and calf. Why don’t we see photos of massive sheds of cows being milked on milk bottles? Why don’t we see photos of calves aching for their mothers? Those calves aren’t getting that milk! That’s dishonest packaging!
‘Why don’t we see photos of pigs after a huge bolt has been shot into their heads on those tasty little pork sausage wrappers?
‘How many butcher shops have murals of dancing cows and pigs painted on their windows? This is not what they are selling! Those cows and pigs are no longer dancing – not that they ever were.
Meat is not just ‘meat’
‘If we want honesty in product naming and packing, lumping the dead bodies of cows, sheep, pigs and a huge variety of other earthlings, under the banner of “meat” isn’t truthful.
‘We don’t see packaging on wrappers that say “Calf 4,672’s mother” or “battery hen number 24, 278,583” do we?’
The Annoying Vegan thinks that the NSW Farmers are just getting a bit precious. ‘The NSW Farmers have suggested referring more to the flavours, i.e., “beef flavoured plant-based burgers”. The Annoying Vegan would like to see the same on actual beef burgers – ‘Death flavoured cow’.
‘I mean, what is beef? It’s a cow or if you want to be technical, it is a cow, or a calf, which as we know is a baby cow, or a steer, or a bull. Using the word “beef” removes it from what it is. The same with pork. We don’t see baby porks running around a paddock (or cramped in feedlots more often than not). Why don’t we see the word “pig” on packaging? That would be way more honest. But I think if you had that kind of honesty on packaging, if people were confronted every day by what they are really eating, you’d have more people looking at the “beef flavoured plant-based burgers” section of the supermarket than the “meat” section, and more people buying the juice squeezed from an almond than calf food stolen from a mother cow.’
$150 million on plant-based food
Why do NSW Farmers want honesty on packaging? ‘According to their own media release, the red meat and livestock industry in 2018-19 contributed to GDP totalling $17.6billion. They don’t want to lose those bucks. They say “The market for alternative protein products currently generates $150 million. This is little compared to the meat market” – but, according to the NSW Farmers report, 50 per cent of Australians already consume plant-based products. Fifty per cent? What I’m seeing is $150 million that used to be spent on the death industry is now being used for plant-based products.
‘If I were an Australian farmer I’d be looking at the $150 million sailing away with an ever-increasing plant-based consumer and I’d be switching to growing almonds, mushrooms or soy.
‘Also: milk thistle. Are we changing the name of that too?
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