Swoop

What is the problem with eating horse meat? Why is eating cow or pig okay, but horse no? I saw a report on TV the other day that police had found a guy with 4 tons of horse meat on his property (it was clearly intended to be sold illegally/as something else). They said the meat would be incinerated. Burning 4 tons of what can only be described as fit, if not popular, for human consumption? You'd think there weren't really growing millions of starving people in the country.

But why?? Why is horse meat bad? is it something physically about the meat or is it a social thing?

Claudia

It is a social thing. It is eaten here, in France (not what is most eaten, but it is easy to find).

Nevertheless, even here, meat has to pass through veterinary controls before being eaten (and from the living animal). People are allowed to bred and kill thir own poultry and rabits, but bigger animals must be controlled. Such a discovery would be destroyed too.

Horse meat was said to be very healthy because it had less parasites (transmissible to human) than beef. But with industrial food, some cases of horse transmitted trichinosis cases have been discovered, from mice which accidentally were mixed to vegetal food (usually, trichinosis was spread by pigs, omnivorous animals)

I am not an horse eater myself, but I recognise that if it did not exist, most draft horse breed would have disappeared in France.

Treacle Worshipper

Originally posted by Swoop
But why?? Why is horse meat bad? is it something physically about the meat or is it a social thing?
I believe there is a theory that horse meat was taboo among some (Celtic) tribes 'cos they worshipped the horse goddess Epona.

There is some info on Epona here

The taboo is mentioned here

TW

Ensign Steve

Starvation is not caused by wasted food. I hear a similar thing when I go to Krispy Kreme, and the QC guy pulls out the mis-shapen doughnuts and tosses them in the garbage. People in line who witness this say "What a waste of food! People are starving, you know!"

The thing is, there is no shortage of food, at least not in the U.S. People are starving because the surplus food isn't getting to the right places. My (athiest) mom volunteers at a (catholic) mission (don't ask) that feeds the homeless. They get a donation from Starbucks every day of all the leftover biscotti and lemon bars and other pastries. One of her tasks is to remove the broken pastries and throw them out, and make the whole and nice ones available for the people who need them. Why should homeless people have to settle for broken pieces, when there are whole, nice pastries available to them?

Four tons of undergound horsemeat would not help the starving people in this country any more than the tons of food donated to charity every day does.

Tom Sawyer

I had some horse meat sashimi last time I was in Japan and I loved it.

I think the taboo comes mainly from the fact that horses have had so much more use in our culture traditionally than cows, goats and the like. You could use them for transportation, fighting, etc and just growing them as a food source would seem like a bit of a waste. Since there was so much use for them, they came to be seen as more pets than just animals and the idea of eating them was seen the same as eating a dog - another socially unacceptable idea that's not really based on anything more than this.

The Other Michael

Compare the following:

National Velvet, My Friend Flicka, Mr. Ed, Francis (OK, Francis was a mule, but still . . . ), Fury

vs

Bossy the cow
Porky Pig

Doesn't it seem obvious which ones society is more likely to want to eat?

Besides, what about all those pre-teen girls who go horse-crazy - how would they be able to have horsemeat for dinner?

cheers,
Michael

Ensign Steve

Michael, that doesn't take Babe and Wilbur (from Charlotte's web) into account. I'm reminded of that joke about the pig with the peg leg.

Daisy

Not to get off topic, but what is the one about the pig with the peg leg?

I am too squeamish to eat dog or cat, but I've never known a guinea pig personally, so I'd eat that. Lately, I've been reconsidering eating octopus and cuddlefish after seeing nature shows on how clever they are.

Most folk I've spoken to who have grown up around chickens have no objection to eating them for supper.

Ensign Steve

A farmer walks into a bar, followed by a pig with a peg leg. The barkeep says, "You can't bring a pig in here!"

The farmer says, "But this is a very special pig. He won't cause any problems, I promise."

The barkeep eyes the peg leg and says, "Yeah, I guess so. What happened to his leg?"

"That's a great story. One time I was working in the field and I had an accident with my tractor. It rolled over and I was pinned under it. The pig saved me by running and getting help."

"Was his leg crushed by the tractor?"

"No, but another time my house caught fire while we were sleeping. The pig squealed and squealed until I woke up, and I was able to get my wife and daughter out just in time."

"Did he lose his leg in the fire?"

"No, but this other time ..."

"Okay, I get it, you have a very heroic pig. But what the heck happened to make him lose his leg?"

"Well, you don't expect us to eat a pig like this all at once, do you?"

<rimshot>

The Other Michael

Hi Daisy,

No fair giving cuttlefish a cutsie name.

Hello Ensign Steve,

Babe and Wilbur didn't seem quite as much "star material" as were Flicka and Francis.

cheers,
Michael