I have recently discovered the joy that is channel 4 on demand. I’m not a huge TV fan, but there have been some really interesting programmes on recently, but alas all have been on channel 4. Being in Wales, and not part of the digital TV age, and refusing on principle to get Sky, we are stuck with S4C. This means that we can watch all the welsh-medium programmes that we like, but get only a very select few channel 4 programmes, and only a few interesting ones that are generally shown at riddiculous times of the night. But, today I finally managed to watch the first episode of ‘Hugh’s Chicken Run’. I know this was just the build up to the horrors that are to come in the next episodes (this evening’s viewing), but I was really horrified by some of the things that it showed…..
I am prone to sentimentality when it comes to animals, and am quite sure that having my own chickens has influenced my attitude towards the programme, for which I am very glad. The more people know about the food they eat and they way it has been raised the better. The head in the sand attitude is just not an excuse, and fair enough, some people can’t afford to buy free range or organic chickens (the last one I bought cost £11, but it did feed 4 of us well for sunday, Steve and I for dinner on the monday, and then became a soup – rather good value I think). But, there is a simple solution – don’t eat as much! Why do we feel that we have a right to eat what we want when we want it with no regard to the way the animal has been produced. My dad told me that when he was young a chicken for sunday dinner was a luxury, something to look forward to. How have we got so far away from that situation in 50 years?
I am a big supporter of what Hugh and others are trying to do, and really hope that it opens people’s eyes to what our supermarket driven society is becoming. When will more people start to think for themselves, realise that the way we live at the moment is not sustainable, and make decisions about how they can help change things?
I do not, and will not buy two for £5 chickens. If we can’t afford free range then we eat something else!
Rant over…! I’m off to watch the next two episodes whilst eating fresh pasta made with eggs from my ladies, and consider my next project…..giving some battery hens a new home.
Hello, read your post and found it interesting, what do you think the supermarkets should do to boost organic chicken sales? I do support this campaign but i do think that the treatment of other animals reared for meat have been ignored slightly.
Hi, I agree completely, the issue of intensive farming of all animals is something that definitely needs highlighting – battery farming is not just chickens! But, hopefully by making people more aware of how chickens are raised it will make them think more about the rest of the meat they consume.
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I am really lucky to be able to buy all my meat from our local farmer, who sells her lambs and beef through a local co-operative. So, I know how the animals we are eating have lived – some of them live in the field next to us and have enjoyed interacting with our chickens! But, I do have to venture to our local Tescos occasionally, and I am always astounded by the lack of promotion of organic or locally produced food. Admittedly, they did have a special on organic beef a few weeks ago, but it was argentinian beef, which to me rather defeats the point of being organic! The organic meat is always hidden away amongst the cheap stuff, often on the upper shelves, and you have to be determined to find it.
The trouble is that the supermarkets are not going to change unless the consumer actively encourages them to. They’re also not going to spend money informing the consumer about the reality of factory farming as they will loose money if people chose not to buy those products. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have the time to wage a campaign against the supermarkets, and accept things as they are because it makes life easier. If we as consumers make active choices to buy more organic or local products then they will have no choice but to stock more. But, if there is far less local or organic produce on sale in the first place, how are people going to be able to make the choice…..?!
Personally, I would encourage people to talk to the manager of their local store and question them about their policies regarding oragnic and local produce, and encourage them to stock more. I would also encourage people to shop at their local butcher or farmers market – as well as getting a much nicer product, it is a much nicer shopping experience!
I know I am being idealistic here, but I really think that things can change, even if it is a slow process. People just need to take responsibily for their own consumer actions.