In fact, when any of us act and live as if our actions and decisions only affect us, when we deny the interdependence of the world, when we act as if we are not all connected and in need of each other, we produce evil. (55, Monica A. Coleman, Making a Way Out of No Way)
I will leave you with a few thoughts...I unintentionally was thinking about this the other day when I was at the grocery store. I have said before that I love shopping in the meat department at Ingles, because I can find some really good deals. What I'm not sure I've mentioned is that I'm in the process of really thinking about where my food comes from and the fact that I really don't want to buy meat if the animal it came from was treated inhumanely. There are no Whole Foods nearby, nor are they in my budget for more an occasional treat. I did some research and discovered that the Kroger near me sells Springer Mountain Farms chicken, which is American certified humane. Yesterday I was at Ingles about to buy some chicken that was on sale, when I remembered that even though the chicken I was buying said, "organic," that that did not mean the chicken was treated or killed humanely and I really struggled with whether I should buy it. I didn't need the chicken precisely at that time-I was shopping for today's dinner, which is going to be a vegetarian spinach lasagna. I picked up the chicken, walked about halfway through the store and then turned around and sadly and frustratedly put the chicken down. I decided that at least for now I will get my chicken at Kroger's. I kept thinking about how getting a good deal is not worth supporting inhumane treatment of a living being. We are all connected, even to plants and animals. It's a hard choice and I definitely do not believe that anyone should be following my example-each choice is the individual's to make. I know that in some areas, there probably isn't any grocery store that sells meat from animals that were treated humanely or they may be way too expensive for an average family. And I don't think that going vegetarian or vegan is always the best option for people. It's all individual-we all have to make choices. Where I am right now is that I am only buying American humanely certified chicken and cage-free eggs. I still eat other meat and unfortunately, I don't think there's any other kinds of meat sold near me that was raised humanely, so I only buy those kinds when there's a really good deal on it. Let me say it again, we are all connected and I do not want to cause evil for an animal or person. What are your thoughts on this issue?
Hi K.C. Jones,
You being selective of what you buy at the grocery store is a great example when you have a choice as you mentioned. This issue reminds me of a video I saw a while ago of animals being mistreated, specifically chickens. I was disgusted by the video but did not know what I could do to advocate against the wrongdoing, you've showed me what I can do now it is up to me to do the research and to make a conscious decision when I shop. In reality for me, it will not happen over night however, I am now enlightened by your actions to have a choice. Is there a website that has a list of animal-friendly grocery store goods?
There is! This site helped me:
http://www.animalwelfareapproved.org/?gclid=CNqR2IfMqqMCFRCenAodtRKK3g
Also, when you're looking at chicken packages, if it's American certified humane, it will say so somewhere on the package, although sometimes it's hard to find.
It's enlightening and empowering to discover you have a choice in so many things, isn't it?! (just like recovery...)
Thank you for the website information. I did check it out. The site was very informative and gave a list of Whole Foods grocery store locations that sell AWA goods.