Teenager refuses to kill her chicken for a class project

[welsummerchicks]

I think most people, it's not that they have weird ideas about where their food comes from, it's that they don't think about it and can't think about it. Close to 50% of the US grosses annually under 25k a year. Nearly 50% of US families are under or near the poverty line. That doesn't leave a lot of room for luxurious thinking. Thinking about organic food, healthy food, farm food, raising your own food - that is so far away that it's in another world.

About 80% of Americans are urban living. So they are pretty far away from the means of their food production. And I think most urban people making near the poverty line support a family or part of one.

No, they don't eat well. Yes, they can't even CONSIDER where their food comes from, how it's made or anything else. They just have to take what they can get the cheapest. MacDonald's? Too expensive. Rent a garden plot? With what? Supermarket? Where? And how? Good food is expensive.

So it's noodles, instant potatoes, chips, the cheapest white bread, sugary cereal, canned soups, canned ravioli, the cheapest possible items to fill kids up so they're not crying at night in their beds.

I don't believe at all, that some urban person near the poverty line really is going to benefit by knowing exactly when or how a rooster needs to be with hens to make eggs. I think it's a ridiculous concern.

I think it has far more to do with what's important to a group of chicken fanatics than what's going to be effective help to people most in need of help.

The only thing that is really important to me, is that people, within the very little latitude they have, can slightly adapt their food choices to a slightly more healthy diet. Change habits, change culture, change income? Probably not very quickly, but maybe a little change, maybe people are a little healthier.

Being able to prepare healthy foods isn't just about BUYING foods or buying different foods. It's about having cooking equipment, containers and space to store buiky foods, a safe, working stove, electric or gas service, and the energy and hope enough to try something different. That's a pretty tall order.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

Quote:
I'd rather die of a heart attack than have someone hang me upside down and cut my throat.

Just sayin'

I dont think it would simply fall over and die, it would grow and grow and grow until it suffered leg problems and couldnt walk and THEN die.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

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I learn to kill chicken when i was a preteen , from my grandmother. You said you like to eat chicken....well the one you stole is only for meat

Sorry you have no right to steal chicken because they are going to be butcher. You even said you wished you had taken more. No you don't have to kill one....

As far as teens knowing where meat ,milk,and eggs come from....seen alot of adults today that don't know all the facts. Like only cows that have had a calf will give milk (calf taken to produce veal) Hens will produce eggs without roosters.....so yes I am sure not all teens know about how meat,milk ,and eggs are produced.

I agree, you had no right to take that chicken. Or anymore that you wished you would have taken.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

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Its not rocket science, you eat meat do you not? If you do where do you think it comes from? Do you think its humanely raised and then given a quick painless death?? If I were you I would have been glad you do the deed so that in the future you dont have to support the commercial farming industry.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

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But what good does knowing how to butcher it if you cant and dont know how to kill it?

 

[Organics North]

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I like where you are attempting to take this discussion.... (It is about education..and what are relevant subjects in school.)... I see where you are going and agree...

ON

ON

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

I think more people SHOULD be educated about where food comes from. It doesn't necessarily have to be through butchering animals, but it's an important component to life and not enough people are educated about it.

I stay every year at fair to watch over my 4-Hers and you wouldn't believe how many ignorant comments I hear. And I don't mean ignorant in an insulting way. It's sad really. I've heard things from the common "do you need a rooster for the hens to lay eggs?" to people who believe RABBITS lay eggs. It's just amazing to me that people can eat food and NOT ask questions about where it came from. I've always been one to want to know exactly where and what happened for the food to be on my plate!

Unfortunately, a lot of ag programs in schools are being cut. We had quite a few kids in our ag classes that never set foot on a farm in their lives and I think these were the kids that benefitted most from these classes. They were always very excited about participating in class projects and they learned ALOT. If these programs are cut completely, kids like this may never have the chance to learn about ag related things.

Our entire country, past and present, is based on agricultural practices. It's sad that many people are uneducated about agriculture when it plays such a huge role in their lives.

 

[welsummerchicks]

This subject really got me thinking. I went out and looked to see if there really was data about what the eating habits of different economic levels and different groups - urban, non urban, were.

I found nothing. I found nonsense like 'the average american drinks starbucks coffee and buys grocery store pizza'. The average american eats 55% of their meals as fast food.

I guess it matters how one defines 'average', but i didn't see in any article on this subject where it was indeed defined. The diet they described didn't sound at all like what the 'average' people I know eat.

I think what people are suggesting as the solution - eat 100% organic, eat all whole grains, eat only veg, go vegan, don't eat any fast food, don't eat any processed food, is totally unrealistic. For one thing it is expensive.

Instead, recommend better processed foods, better fast foods, better heat and eat foods. Try to get a few target areas that are really, really bad, improved.

The stats on the usda site disrupt the horrible american diet picture with information -

"Consistent with dietary and health recommendations, Americans now consume two-fifths more grain products and a fifth more fruits and vegetables per capita than they did in 1970, eat leaner meat, and drink lower fat milk. Many people have traded the typical high-fat eggs-and- bacon breakfast of 1970 for more convenient ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, most of which are fortified with selected vitamins and minerals. Moreover, a steady increase in the proportion of refined flour that is enriched (from 65 percent in 1970 to more than 90 percent today), changes in flour enrichment standards in 1974 and 1983, along with big increases in grain product consumption since 1984, have boosted per capita supplies of five nutrients lost in the milling process and approximately replaced by manufacturers--iron, niacin, thiamine, riboflavin, and, since January 1, 1998, folate."

"Increases in domestic production, rising imports, and improved storage facilities afford year-round availability of many fresh foods. Thanks to genetic research, today’s carrots and squashes deliver twice as much beta carotene (a nutrient that the body converts to vitamin A) as they did in 1970, and today’s grapes are much sweeter than years ago (and per capita consumption has tripled since 1970). "

But this is balanced with other information not positive:

"But contrary to recommendations, Americans are consuming record-high amounts of caloric sweeteners and some high-fat dairy products, and near record amounts of added fats-- including salad and cooking oils and baking and frying fats. Moreover, a hefty increase in grain consumption reflects higher consumption of mostly refined, rather than high-fiber, whole-grain products--less than 2 percent of the 148 pounds of wheat flour consumed per capita in 1996 was whole wheat flour. (Most nutrients lost during processing, including fiber, vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals, are not restored to refined flour.) Potatoes used for fat-laden products like frozen french fries (eaten mostly in fast-food eateries), potato chips, and shoestrings accounted for 11 percent of total U.S. per capita fruit and vegetable supplies (fresh-weight basis) in 1996, compared with 8 percent in 1970."

"Evidence from various sources suggests that the average American now consumes more food, more snacks, bigger portions, and more calories than in 1970. A 15-percent increase during 1970-94 in the level of food energy (calories) in the U.S. per capita food supply reflects higher levels of all three energy-yielding nutrients: carbohydrates, fat, and protein. More calories, along with reductions in average physical activity (or energy expenditure), are behind an increase in obesity among adults, adolescents, and children in America. In fact, one-third of adults were overweight in the early 1990's, compared with one-quarter in the late 1970's."

America's meat supply today is larger and leaner. We eat a lot of meat, but leaner meats. -

"In 1997, total meat consumption (red meat, poultry, and fish) amounted to 192 pounds (boneless, trimmed-weight equivalent) per person, 1 pound below 1994's record high and 15 pounds above the 1970 level. Each American consumed an average of 20 pounds less red meat than in 1970, 32 pounds more poultry, and 3 pounds more fish and shellfish."

"Nutritional concern about fat and cholesterol has encouraged the production of leaner animals, the closer trimming of outside fat on retail cuts of meat, and the marketing of a host of lower fat ground and processed meat products--significantly lowering the meat, poultry, and fish group’s contribution to total fat and saturated fat in the food supply. Despite record-high per capita consumption of total meat in 1994, the proportion of fat in the U.S. food supply contributed by meat, poultry, and fish declined from 35 percent in 1970 to 25 percent in 1994. Similarly, the proportion of saturated fat contributed by meat, poultry, and fish fell from 37 percent in 1970 to 26 percent in 1994."

"Milkfat Consumption. In 1996, Americans drank an average of 22 percent less milk but ate nearly 2-1/2 times as much cheese (excluding cottage types) as in 1970. Annual per capita consumption of milkfat from fluid milk products (beverage milk and yogurt) has declined by half since 1970 due to lower beverage milk consumption and a trend toward lower fat milks. Americans cut their average consumption of fluid whole milk by two-thirds between 1970 and 1996, and nearly tripled their use of lower fat milks. But, because of the growing yen for cheese and fluid cream products, there was no overall reduction in the use of milkfat. Annual per capita consumption of fluid milk declined from 31 gallons in 1970 to 24 gallons in 1996.

The beverage milk trend is toward lower fat milk. While whole milk represented 81 percent of all beverage milk (plain, flavored, and buttermilk) in 1970, its share dropped to 36 percent in 1996. In 1996, plain whole milk accounted for 37 percent of all plain beverage milk, 2- percent reduced fat milk for 35 percent, and light (0.5-percent and 1-percent) and fat-free (skim) milks combined for 28 percent. In terms of average consumption, light and fat-free milks increased 25 percent in 1991-96, 2-percent milk declined 12 percent, and whole milk declined 15 percent"

..."Average Annual Use of Added Fats and Oils Has Begun to Decline But Remains Near Record-High Level. Americans’ overriding nutrition concern in the mid-1990's with cutting dietary fat is apparent in the recent per capita food supply data, which shows a modest decline since 1993 in the use of added fats and oils. However, average use of added fats and oils in 1997 remained more than a fourth above the 1970 level. "

VERy interestingly, the data also shows the trend to eat fewer shell eggs that had been increasing each year, has leveled off for quite some time and is not continuing to go down.

What does the data show needs to change?

We have a couple hot spots. We need to focus on continuing to eat lower fat milks. We need to eat less cheese. We need to chop the high fat salad dressings. We need to stop using caloric sweetners and sugared soft drinks. We need to continue eating lower fat meats, and watch out for fats and oils added to processed foods. We need to watch for oils and sugars added to processed foods.

We need to stick to basics. We're eating too large a portions, too many calories.

 

[Rozzie]

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I think one of the things I read said it was 1 of 4 classes she could have taken for that required credit... Cant find it it now so I may be wrong.

Sometimes you don't really have that much choice. I know when my son was in high school, we had to list 3 choices for everything. The school then determined what you actually got to take based on scheduling needs.

 

[Rozzie]

Quote:
I'd rather die of a heart attack than have someone hang me upside down and cut my throat.

Just sayin'

I dont think it would simply fall over and die, it would grow and grow and grow until it suffered leg problems and couldnt walk and THEN die.

Possibly. The ones I rescued did not.