Explore options to meat in 2009

Jan 3, 2009 1 min read

To the editor:

It’s been a bad year for the meat industry.

It began in February, with USDA’s largest beef recall.

In April, a study of 88,000 women found that those eating lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains were 24 and 18 percent less likely to suffer a heart attack and stroke, respectively, than women addicted to typical American diets.

A National Cancer Institute study in November concluded that consumption of meat and dairy elevates cancer risk.

Last spring, Pew Charitable Trusts and Johns Hopkins University called for a phaseout of factory farming. In November, California voters agreed by requiring that animals raised for food have space to spread their wings, possibly wiping out the state’s egg industry.

Let’s make 2009 a really good year for ourselves by exploring the rich variety of meat and dairy analogs in our local supermarket. This is a new year’s resolution that’s fun to keep.

Allen Orkin

Fort Myers Beach