I’m posting this because it’s a really good look behind the food industry. It’s odd, but the only time I ate more meat was when I toured and lived in the UK. That’s because the cost of fresh vegetables was so high, in the 80’s a head of broccoli cost $4.95 in Glasgow.
At one point, I put out the request for my concert tour that, if possible, I’d prefer vegetarian food when I was a guest at someone’s home. The violinist I performed with did not make this request.
After a show one night we were welcomed by a lovely family in northern England who had spent a lot of time and effort on an evening meal for us. The head of the household was, you guessed it, a butcher !
My lady companion had steak and loads of other meaty treats to choose from. My meal, because the family had no idea what to do, was a bowl of carrots with butter, homemade bread and a ton of pastries.
Finding out what fresh vegetables cost I could easily understand why these lovely people were limited in what to serve me.
Eventually, after coming down with the start of MS I went back to eating meat when I lived in England and Scotland and I felt much better for it. In those cold, damp climates there were nutrients I just wasn’t getting from a veggie and grain diet including not getting enough protein.
I’d seen videos like the one here from the BBC since the 60’s so I was well aware of how the food industry worked on a massive scale. But, when your budget is limited as well as your protein sources, you eat what you can afford.
It poses a tough quandary for a lot of people, for others with no options due to low income…. it is what it is.
Meg Davis Music and Arts 