Meatless Monday

I have no problem with Meatless Mondays, as long as the goal is not Meatless Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and so on.

I think Americans in general do eat too much meat and that the industrialized meat industry is pernicious. But I don't agree with animal rights activists who eventually would like to ban all slaughter of animals for food. As for the nutrition argument, I think the "health" opposition to meat, and particularly red meat, will turn out to be as much of a fad as opposition to butter, eggs and whole milk.

Jane Black's piece in the Washington Post Food section this week doesn't delve into the arguments for or against eating meat but rather chronicles the efforts of activist groups to promote Meatless Mondays and the meat industry's counter-measures.

Ever since I had my first gout attack at the tender age of 30 while I was on the protein-rich Atkins diet, I've consciously tried to limit my consumption of meat (proteins contain purines, which lead to the formation of uric acid crystals that cause gout). I probably have at least one, if not two, meatless dinners a week (not so sure about lunch).

A campaign to scale back meat consumption could have several benefits. It would encourage people to eat more vegetables, and it might encourage them to buy the more expensive locally grown and butchered meats in the remaining meals. But it also runs the risk of co-opting people into the notion that meat is bad, an unnecessary and harmful indulgence. Meat has always been a part of the human diet and Michael Pollan discusses some of the reasons in his Omnivore's Dilemma.

I have no problems with vegetarians or vegans who out of personal conviction refrain from eating meat or animal products, but I'm wary of a campaign like this getting hijacked by extremists on a mission to proselytize the rest of us or to impose their standards through government guidelines.

I have not yet read Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals but it has obviously become a major voice in this debate. I'm in favor of any effort to enlighten us about the issues of industrialized food production, and a significant reduction in meat consumption might convince the industry to begin altering some of its practices. The unavoidable fact is that we cannot continue to eat as much meat as we do now and produce that meat in a humane and environmental fashion.

A slogan like "meatless Mondays" is probably helpful in a campaign like this, especially with institutions, but I think that personally I will continue to let my meatless meals fall where they may. Having grown up with "meatless Fridays", I'm not ready for the regimentation of a new religion.