So, last Saturday I was craving an egg-and-cheese on a bagel, something that I have mastered in the kitchen, now that I no longer eat eggs out. (Sidenote: to all my friends who have been thinking about visiting me, there is no bigger enticement than a homemade egg-and-cheese on a bagel...or croissant).
Alex had mentioned the Adams Morgan Farmers' Market, one that we had never been to. When we got there, it was small and dismal compared to the Dupont Circle Farmers' Market. I was not on the hunt for produce, so I started asking if folks had eggs. One farmer said he did. So, I went into my usual questions (for those who have asked what questions I ask --- cough: mom--- here they are!):
Me: Are your hens roaming freely outside?
Farmer: Well, they are not kept in cages.
Me: That's good. But are they kept outside?
Farmer: Well, they are my neighbor's chickens. And I don't think they are outside because the foxes will get them.
Me: Okay, well... do you know if they clip their beaks?
Farmer: No, they don't.
Hmmm... That did not sound convincing to me. It looked like it was soy milk and cereal for me. I saw another vendor, one that Alex had looked into for a CSA (Community-Supported Agriculture), Star Hollow Farms. So, I went over and asked him the same questions:
Me: Are your hens roaming freely outside?
Farmer: Yes.. They have a quarter-acre pasture.
Me: Oh, that is great! Do you clip their beaks or claws?
Farmer: Well, we get them as chicks, and their beaks are already clipped.
Whoa. In the Chicken and the Egg Part I, I wrote that many farmers cannot escape the grasp of the factory farming industry, and this was one such farmer. He was doing the best he could, much better than most, but he didn't hatch his own chicks. From what I have read, hatching chicks is not an easy thing just to pick up, even for a farmer who has hens. It is comparable to asking a guitarist not just to learn how to play the instrument, but also how to make it.
So I told him that I valued what he did, but that humane treatment of animals was not something I could compromise on, and thanked him. He was understanding.
Well, Alex took Winston home because he seemed tired and hot, and I bustled over to the U Street Farmers' Market to get eggs from a trusted source, Pecan Meadow Farm. When I got there, I asked them how they got their chicks with their beaks on, since I had learned during prior interrogations that they did not have a hatchery. (As you may know, farmers are not subject to Miranda warnings: 7-2 decision in 1997, Thomas and Scalia dissenting because the constitution does not mention Miranda by name, but if everybody else has the right to Miranda warnings, farmers should be too.)
The farmer at U Street informed me that he called the hatchery and specifically asked that the chicks come with their beaks and claws on. He gets his chicks from Reich's Hatchery and Moyer's Chicks. He has never had a problem getting chicks with their beaks and claws on.
So, it is possible to get chicks with their beaks and claws on. Maybe Star Hollow doesn't know about Reich's Hatchery or Moyer's Chicks. (Note to female Phillies fans: there is a rumor that the first 5000 females in attendance at any Jamie Moyer start get to keep their beaks. Robert Reich fans: there is no equivalent promotion at this time.) But I will be sure to email Star Hollow and let them know that it is possible to get chicks that haven't had their beaks and claws removed and there is a demand for eggs from those hens.
If you have ever seen a photo of a little chick getting its beak clipped, I suspect you demand it too.
By far, one of the hardest parts of eating humane all the time is breakfast (breakfast is the only challenge I have encountered thus far... I am sure once I go out for Latin food, I will write a tortured post about how I was not able to eat the cheesy goodness).
So, being humane means eating free range eggs. Not "free range" like Land O Lakes (which only means that they are not kept in cages), but free range meaning:
- Their beaks and claws are not clipped. Mass egg and chicken producers clip their birds beaks and claws so that they don't peck and scratch at each other. Chickens in confinement of course peck and claw at each other because they are packed together. Luckily I don't have a beak, or else Alex, my boyfriend -- we share a 1-bedroom apartment-- would be one unhappy duck.
- They actually go outside... Not just have access to outdoors. Most companies that advertise their eggs as "cage free" or "free range" are only using those terms in the sense that the Tobacco Industry uses terms like "low-tar cigarettes." The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) explains that,
"The truth is that the majority of egg labels have little relevance to animal welfare or, if they do, they have no official standards or any mechanism to enforce them."
"... the amount, duration, and quality of outdoor access is undefined."
Really, the only way to find out how the eggs you are about to eat were hatched is to ask.
So I end up asking a lot of questions, and it is a great way to get to know the farmers. They are usually excited to talk about their farms and practices. And after having spoken with many farmers, I have learned that even they cannot escape the grasp of the factory farming industry......... I'll write up today's experience at the farmers' market in part II.
My eating habits have been as varied and fickle as my life choices... From childhood to adulthood (if that is what you can call the time when someone is 29 and sang 8 songs at karaoke last night), I went from being an omnivore to a pescetarian to a vegetarian to a humane-omnivore to a vegetarian. And now, as more undercover videos are released that detail the rampant abuse at dairy farms (thanks to the courageous work of leaders at The Humane Society, PETA, and especially Mercy for Animals), I have found it harder and harder to eat factory-farmed dairy.
Except that I love dairy products. I am a foodie at heart, and my friends (some who have meat daily) often marvel at the fact that a vegetarian can cook really good food.
So, how do I make my mom's neighborhood-favorite spanakopita or my brother's gourmet eggplant parm? Easy: I go the farmer's market and get mozz, parmesan and eggs from farmers who don't allow their animals to live a tortured existence, as Jonathan Safran Foer eloquently detailed in his book Eating Animals.
But how do you know if the farmers are actually humane? The USDA criteria for "humane" does not meet the standards of how we would classify "humane." And by humane, I mean if we saw a video of how the animals spend their day, we would not turn our eyes away in shame and agony. (That is an entire blog post for an entirely different time, but it is something that I consider every time I eat or buy an animal product.)
This blog is going to chronicle my journey from being a vegetarian to being a humane vegetarian. While I have already found some amazing farmers (like Keswick Creamery) and delicious restaurants (like Java Green) in DC, I want to find many more. This blog will include farmers who are humane, restaurants that have humane dairy and eggs (and those that don't), and how one goes about eating humane without wasting food or being rude to beloved hosts who don't buy humane dairy and eggs.
Many thanks to my friends who asked me to share the ongoing humane vendors and restaurants I have found, and to the animals rights groups who have inspired this exciting choice. And thanks in advance to those who won't judge me when I fail on both accounts and grab a jumbo-slice on a late Saturday night/Sunday morning.
