After reading a recent article about Americans decreasing their meat consumption in response to the current pathetic economy, we wanted to ask all of you about your own carnivorous tendencies!
Has the recession inspired any change in your meat-eating habits?
I chose F. And I have a reason. I've only been out on my own and cooking for the past couple years, so I hadn't really had the chance to develop consistent enough patterns to notice a change...
ReplyDeleteI chose F also: since I've lived by myself, I've had meat 1 to 2 times a week, mostly because I like pasta and work 2+ jobs at at time, not a lot of time to concentrate on dinner. Now that my husband works & goes to school, our meals are determined by ease of preparation rather than cost.
ReplyDeleteI too chose F: I am eating less meat for reasons other than the economy. That being said, if I do eat meat, it is seafood or game that we have processed ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI love all these "out of the box" people.... and this too applies to us. Living out of the US at the moment allows us to eat what we feel like and being a Chef, we don't base our menu's on the economy. We eat for taste and desire..mmmm.
ReplyDeleteWe eat about the same amount as before: beef, veal, pork, wild boar, chicken, pigeon, squab, lamb, goat, fish and seafood... all good. We are definitely NOT vegetarians.
Many things trouble me about eating meat including costs, slaughtering practices and carbon footprint. But I can only go about a week as a vegetarian before my carnal craving kicks in. And the truth is I just like the stuff. So in an effort to ease my troubles, I look for locally raised meat and buy larger (and cheaper) cuts and dress them myself.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to see so many people chose B, actually. But, as much as we're cutting back on meat conscientiously, we are also buying the beef, chicken and pork that we will eat in bulk, freezing individual servings. This is a nod to both the recession and increased efficiency.
ReplyDeleteI still eat good meat but small amounts. Its not the main course. I think the portions that people consume on a reglar basis are much too big. I would rather have the quality of meat than quantity.
ReplyDeleteThere's definitely more chicken in our fridge and freezer than beef these days. I'm also guilty of buying more canned tuna AND canned chicken if it's on sale. Oh, and if there's a freak sale on frozen shrimp? I'm aaalll over that.
ReplyDeleteBecause we have a farm and supply our own beef and lamb we still eat the same amount of meat but if i have to buy it we eat chicken,which is cheaper because i refuse to pay $26.kg upwards for steak.By the way we still are lucky to get $1.20 kg for live cattle,someone in the middle makes a lot of money.
ReplyDeleteWow. Great comments. I am trying to use this recession *opportunity* to explore less expensive cuts, but not compromise on quality. Buying humane, hormone-free, naturally raised and local foods is important to me. Less meat in general is a good thing, so we have vegetarian day each week as a general rule.
ReplyDeleteAnother "F" vote here...
ReplyDeleteThings haven't changed too much: I've always shopped carefully, buying in bulk when advantageous, and freezing in meal-sized portions. What DOES change is more a result of seasonality -- ingredients that work on the grill appear more, as does fish (cooking fish in the winter leaves the house smelling for days, so we tend to eat it more in the summer months).
Besides, protein from fish and cheese were economical alternatives to meat in the past -- which is hardly the case today.
For year we only eat chicken, lots of ground turkey & some fish, no red meat unless my dad brings venison when they visit.
ReplyDeleteI do wait for it to go on sale or marked down for quick sale because it needs to be frozen today and then I will buy up every last package & toss it in the freezer. I also dig through all of the packages ground turkey & chicken breasts to see if they are coming up on the freeze by date and ask them if they will mark it down.
I never pay full price for it, if I had to we would never eat it.
Never, never, never will I give up meat! Besides the amazing taste I think it is natural for us to be carnivores and it is the easiest way to get protein.
ReplyDeleteIt is on sale often at Whole Foods lately...a great help for those of us tightening our purse strings.
I've been a vegetarian since the meat-fairy became a lie, but I have swapped protein supplements (powders, shakes and bars) for beans, fruits and vegetables because of the recession.
ReplyDeleteEat the real stuff and stay healthy and be happy!
ReplyDeleteUsually less red meat, more white meat and green vegetables and fruits. Thank you for sharing.
I chose "A". I chose this without question or thought to any other option. I come from a meat and potatoes kind of family. I certainly don't NEED a starbucks mocha in the morning, although I do like them, but if it truly came between that and a steak, I would go with steak.
ReplyDeleteI chose F just because I haven't noticed the price change in meat..maybe i haven't paid enough attention..just because..well its a part of my daily diet..
ReplyDeletebut maybe ill start taking it in to consideration?
I chose A! I can't live without meat. I still eat a lot of veggies, but I cut out things like candy and processed foods to make up for it (I hope).
ReplyDeleteI have always hated meatloaf. I don't care how little money I have, I am never eating it. I did eat a lot more seafood though. I think part of it has to do with money but an even bigger part is that I moved to another geographic location where seafood is not as much of a staple and a bit pricier.
ReplyDeleteI chose F as well. My family has never been big on meat anyway, but we do eat it. Since it has never been an everyday thing I haven't noticed much of a change. I just always tend to buy whatever is on sale and I use frozen chicken.
ReplyDeleteI dint choose any, 'm still very much a carnivorous. Its all the same for me.
ReplyDeleteI read Skinny Bitch recently and was kind of scarred. Luckily I live in Costa Rica and can find out easily where my meat products come from, it's a farm close by. I made a post about it recently. http://www.cheapfoodhere.com/cheap-food-hints/should-i-eat-meat
ReplyDeleteI have recently (March) quit eating beef, poultry and pork due in large part to both Pollan's books. That said, if I could afford to eat free range grass fed meat I would probably still continue. At this point in time, eliminating them from my diet was a better option (plus it's been cool little science experiment) but I don't think I will ever go back to being a daily meat eater.
ReplyDeleteI am vegetarian myself but my hubby is not. However, due to high prices and a very steep drop in income, we have cut down our meat/seafood purchases to only once a week. It does him well, he looks and feels a lot healthier.
ReplyDeleteEven before the recession, I was eating less red meat because I was less interested in it. I don't understand it, just something the body started telling me. I still do eat beef, but not as frequently. I haven't started buying cheaper meat (beef, pork, poultry, etc.) in response to the recession because I would rather spend my money on good ingredients and cook them well; I think that's a good investment. The recession started early for me, too, since I was laid off from a job I'd been at for almost 15 years in 2003 and have been scrambling ever since.
ReplyDeleteWe have been eating very little meat for years. Lately we've found a way to get grass-fed lamb, so we have that occasionally. We also occasionally buy organic free range chicken. Fish is complicated to get right. The more I read, the more I'm convinced that using meat as a condiment is the way to go.
ReplyDeleteHa! You totally pegged me as a person who doesn't like to be pegged! :)
ReplyDeleteOther reason for choosing F: we supplement mostly veg with seafood/fish because we love eating it, but rarely have it more than once a year. This was pre-recession eating habits. My husband also turned me on to the glories of canned sardines instead of tuna. So much tastier, sustainable, and versatile I've found. Nice to have some cans of fish around when you want something quick and can't get anything fresh.
I also will have a tough time ever giving up smoked salmon. *drool*
I vote B.
ReplyDeleteWe love all the veggies we're growing and all the meat recalls have really grossed us out