H. W. Ockerman 1*
N. Pensel+
*The Ohio State University Department of Animal Sciences
+ITA-NTA Food Technology Institute,Argentine National for Agricultural Technology
To eat meat or not to eat meat? Although humans are omnivorous by design, our digestive and biochemical processes will allow us to survive without eating meat. If humankind can survive without meat, what then are the driving forces for meat eating and its desirability from the perspectives of the individual or the population? Questions arise such as:
These concerns are frequently raised in scientific, social, and political discussions.
Future of Meat
For all the previously stated reasons, and finding no cause for religious doctrine to avoid eating meat, the decision to eat or not to eat meat should be made by the individual, without biased influence of the press, the industry, or the scientific community. For example, Feinstein (1987) suggested that selection of ecological data can change the perception of the relationship between diet and health. He gives as an illustration the "cholesterophobia" era, that was introduced by the interpretation of epidemilogic data from six selected countries (Keys, 1953). The results imply a strong positive relationship between fat calories (as percentage of total calories) and death (per 1000) in males. However, a much less striking relationship (Feinstein, 1987) would have been noted if the epidemiologic data of 16 additional countries (total 22) had been analyzed (Yerushalmy and Hilldoe, 1957) along with the selected six countries.
Dr. Lawrie (1970) also explained that meat is eaten or added to other food to improve its biological value, to add flavor, and to give a feeling of satiety or status. The power of liking and wanting to eat meat by carnivorous humans should not be overlooked, since this is a powerful physiological stimulant. Naturally, politics will always play a decisive role in how countries will be fed in the future, now more than ever with globalization. However, political doctrines are relatively short term, and the individual will, in the long run, have the last word. Food, when there is no starvation, is more than a bunch of nutrients. Consumption is one of the pleasures of life, and most people know what they like to eat. The majority of people like variety and particularly meat; thus, the future for increased total world meat consumption is good. Countries that traditionally consume large amounts of meat will reduce their meat intake, trying new products to add variety to their diets. Nations that consume little meat will, as their economy increases, consume more meat for the same reason. The future for meat production, processing, and manufacturing and most important, eating satisfaction and health, looks extremely bright.
1 For more information, contact at: The Ohio State University, 015 Animal Science Building, 2029 Fyffe Road, Columbus, OH 43210; 614-292-4317; fax: 614-292-2929; e-mail: ockerman.2@osu.edu