Horse meat

somethingorother said:
ETA: Those of you who 'don't eat badly reared meat'... do you check this in any frozen food if you eat this, do you check in all cafes and restaurants and pre packed sandwiches? I think a lot of people will find that they actually do eat badly reared meat. But if you are thorough then well done to you.
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No admittedly i dont check everything but I dont eat from fast food places much anyway and i do ttry and keep as much of my diet fresh, you could say this though about eggs, do you check all the food you eat with eggs in as this will contain battery reared chicken eggs? Every little but of awareness helps to push people toward british food and meat.
 
dizz4 said:
Is anyone as disgusted as I am to read that a restaurant in Edinburgh is selling horse meat.... this makes me sick to my stomach... does anyone else have any views on this and is there anything we can do about it...

Dizz4
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You absolute joker! I trust you are vegetarian and are this passionate about stopping cows being eaten?

If not, please get over it.

As long as the animal is reared and killed humanely, I'll eat anything. What makes a horse so special compared to a pig?
 
I have eaten horsemeat several times and would eat it again, it is lovely! I brought a horsemeat sausage back to work last time I went to France and everyone except the vegetarian was happy to try it and they all loved it.

@vegetarians do you wear leather? Does your horse have a leather saddle or bridle? Do you eat Haribo/jelly sweets. Do you eat fish? If yes to any of these why not eat horse then?

the idea that people are going to start stealing horses to eat them is ludicrous, the markets are packed with horses and if it takes off in a big way there will be farms breeding meat animals.

Re the famous horses killed through injury it is doubtful that they would be suitable to eat anyway due to drugs etc but the horse doesn't care whether he is cremated and put in a pot on your mantlepiece or whether he is cooked and eaten as long as he doesn't suffer.
 
OMG, how disgusting, they're eating someone's pet! Well, I know a lady who keeps pet sheep, so ban eating lamb cos it's disgusting!

Honestly...

On a less light note - the vast majority of the public have no idea how their food is raised. Did you know that the food fed to organic, free range chickens is grown where amazonian rainforest used to grow? Yep, your feel good food has a bigger carbon footprint than Tony Blair, and is destroying rainforests.
Not to mention, as an aside, that free range units are notoriously cruel, hotbeds of violence between birds (what happens when you take a bird caperble of remembering 50-100 individuals at the most, and stick it in a field with 7000 birds? Oh yeah! They eat each other!)

So yeah. Have a little think about that before you whitter on about how it's cruel to eat a horse (which has probably been raised for meat).
 
I personally wouldn't eat horse meat because I would see it as eating a pet. I think that livestock like cows,pigs, sheep etc they are mainly bred for human consumption in the UK and as long as they have had a good life it doesnt really bother me. But horses in the UK are mainly bred for riding, showing etc or even just as pets. Eating a horse to me would be like eating a cat or a dog thats why I disagree with it.
 
Horse meat is the same as any other meat. If you are prepared to eat one animal why not eat a horse? I would eat it, never had the opportunity to. Dont think I would eat my own horse! I like pigs and I eat those, I like cows and I eat those, I used to keep chickens and I often ate chicken so why not eat horse too? Afterall, the ones you eat were not out hacking last weekend or someones special pet. They are bred to be eaten just like other food animals
 
Harper_Gal said:
Not to mention, as an aside, that free range units are notoriously cruel, hotbeds of violence between birds (what happens when you take a bird caperble of remembering 50-100 individuals at the most, and stick it in a field with 7000 birds? Oh yeah! They eat each other!)
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Would just like to point out that cramming 20,000 of such chickens into a barn is much, much worse than putting them in a field. I wouldn't call free range chicken farming cruel.

I don't particuarly want to eat horse meat but I don't care if others do. The calf I raised at my school farm was just as intelligent, loving and friendly and had just as much of a personality as any horse I have ever known. I've even seen a video of a girl hacking out on a cow! I still eat beef, since I know I'm not eating her (she entered the food chain 4-5 years ago). Nothing makes horses special enough not to eat.
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JVB said:
I think if horses had been farmed like cows or sheep and were pretty wild then I would find I had no problem with it, but knowing I may be eating a horse that has been someone's pet and has fallen on bad times and ended up going for meat then I would feel differently.
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These unfortunate "pet" horses are more likely to be in a tin of food that we all feed to our dogs and cats. They may say "beef flavour" on the tin but old dobin from down the road is more likey to be in there! Best make sure all those of you that oppose eating horses, but own cats and dogs, are not feeding your pets someone elses pet! :)
 
somethingorother said:
A lot of you are saying as long as it is raised and killed humanely then it's fine. To be honest, very little meat is raised and transported humanely. There are a few people who state that they only eat free range meat, one that only specifies pultry etc. Well done to these people. But if you are going to say you will only eat horse meat if it is humane... you should look at what the rest of your meat goes through. I agree with those who have said similar above.

I'm veggie btw so would not eat horse meat. But I see no problem with it, it is probably better than 99% of the rest of the meat which passes through abattoirs in regards to how it was raised.

ETA: Those of you who 'don't eat badly reared meat'... do you check this in any frozen food if you eat this, do you check in all cafes and restaurants and pre packed sandwiches? I think a lot of people will find that they actually do eat badly reared meat. But if you are thorough then well done to you.
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Subconsciously I do this. I have for years only been cooking from scratch - no bought in ready meals, if there's something in the freezer it's something I cooked extra of earlier! I buy my meat from a local butcher who sources his pigs from one farm, lamb from another and beef from another, all highly traceable even before the legislation, and he has plenty of free range everything including poultry. His sausages are delicious but he won't enter the competitons because he doesn't feel his are good enough. We have our own hens for eggs, and we almost never eat out, but if I do I almost always have fish as OH doesn't like it so I rarely cook at home.

I've eaten horsemeat steak in France years ago - very tasty and tender, I'm sure none of the ridden HHO ponies and horses would be any good for horsemeat though - too old, too hard worked = too tough!
 
I am a vegetarian but i don't see any difference in eating horse to a cow. In fact if i don't see any wrong in eating dog, cat etc. If you are going to eat animals then why only eat the ugly ones:o It is the treatment before they are killed that concerns me, not in all cases but definitely with cats/ dogs and some farm animals. Anyhoo, horse/cow it's meat at the end of the day.
 
I personally wouldn't eat horse meat. I am not a vegetarian, but i make sure that the meat/eggs or anything from an animal is free range. It's the welfare before the animal is killed that i have the problem with, not the consumption of the meat/ produce.
 
As long as his meat is ethically produced and slaughtered and (if imported), comes on the hook, not the hoof or he uses local source animals, I can't see the problem.
 
I am quite surpirsed at the majority of replies and how willing the majority of you are to accept horsemeat as the norm in restarants etc even if you would not eat it yourselves - Take a look at all of the quotes and phrases at the bottom of peoples siggies about horses being majestic, loyal, friends etc, we seem to hold them in high esteem when it suits but would accpet to eat them as well - Put aside if humanly reared etc, these creatures are animals that we trust our lives with our childrens lives and they willingly take us to where we want to go and try really hard -
I think the majoirty of the posts are going with the momentum and dont want to look too soft.
I am now prepared to be shot down in flames... Yes I do eat free range chicken and fish, dont have a problem with non horsey people eating horse because they have never had the experience and magic of coming close to one to understand... But most people on here have. Cows did not fight wars for us, horses did!
:p
 
gemin1eye said:
Harper_Gal said:
Would just like to point out that cramming 20,000 of such chickens into a barn is much, much worse than putting them in a field. I wouldn't call free range chicken farming cruel.
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They are kept 5 to a pen, which is adaquate to prevent social stressing, they are safe from predation, they are protected from disease, they are very closely monitored (impossible to check 7000 birds as they're running around a field!) and are a lot healthier and happier.

I quote an anonymous irish free range chicken farmer: "The battery unit is much better, they're much healthier and happier"

I have been into both units recently (and it was a 60,000 battery unit) and although it's unpleasant, I nearly threw up in the free range unit - I was surrounded by bald, half starved birds who are banned from eating and going outside by the dominant bossy birds. I left determined to return to save the worst of them. They actually looked like they were ready for eating.

There was not a single bird in that condition in the battery unit. So tell me, how is it crueller?
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Daisy2 said:
I am quite surpirsed at the majority of replies and how willing the majority of you are to accept horsemeat as the norm in restarants etc even if you would not eat it yourselves - Take a look at all of the quotes and phrases at the bottom of peoples siggies about horses being majestic, loyal, friends etc, we seem to hold them in high esteem when it suits but would accpet to eat them as well - Put aside if humanly reared etc, these creatures are animals that we trust our lives with our childrens lives and they willingly take us to where we want to go and try really hard -
I think the majoirty of the posts are going with the momentum and dont want to look too soft.
I am now prepared to be shot down in flames... Yes I do eat free range chicken and fish, dont have a problem with non horsey people eating horse because they have never had the experience and magic of coming close to one to understand... But most people on here have. Cows did not fight wars for us, horses did!


Yes but someone else would have a wonderful heart warming story to tell about cows and how we shouldn't eat them! You are biased towards horses. If you are prepared to eat one animal then really eating any animal should be ok. Just because one is fluffy, one is pretty, one is special and majestic should be no reason. Take a pig, one of the most intelligent animals you will find, yet eaten.
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QR - not read article but I dont have any issue with people eating horse meat if they choose to. I have a real soft spot for sheep, but still enjoy a nice bit of roast lamb....and happily tuck into chicken that was running around my parents lawn only a couple of days before. As long as its been a humane slaughter and the animal hasn't suffered I have no issue! I would suspect most horse meat in the UK will be locally slaughtered??

The only issue I have surrounding the slaughter of horses is the imo inhumane transport of some horses on the continent.
 
Meat is meat as far as I'm concerned. Yes it would be lovely if all the animals could have a wonderful, strees free life before they arrive on my plate. I try my best to only buy free range, ethically produced local meat BUT if I was starving I'd eat whatever I could get my hands on and that includes my horse. Yes I love her and I'd hate for it to come to that, but she isn't a pet and she isn't "my baby".
 
sarahsum1 said:
I think the majoirty of the posts are going with the momentum and dont want to look too soft.
.
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I have absolutely no idea how accurate or, indeed, inaccurate this may be, but would just like to say, I would have given my answer if it was against every other answer:D
 
I suppose my answer is no I would not eat horsemeat and respect to all for their opinions, I was just a little surprised at how many would or agree thats its ok to because we adorn the forum with loving pictures and sentimets of adoration for our equines. Just a little surprised thats all.:)
 
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