GQ Examines if Eating Meat is Bad

In a recent GQ Magazine feature, writer Ben Dolnick explains the many reasons why eating meat is bad for animals and the planet. By looking at both environmental and philosophical angles, Dolnick explains the fallacy behind eating certain animals—such as chickens—while loving others as companions. To prove one of his points, Dolnick quotes Farm Forward founder Alan Gross, who says, “We messed with the genetics of poultry starting in the 1940s to make them bloated and meaty, so nearly all the chickens currently in existence—even those claiming to be antibiotic-free, cage-free, and raised on an ashram by kittens—are the product of an environmental fiasco.” From the philosophical angle, Dolnick turns to Bruce Friedrich, director of Policy and Advocacy at Farm Sanctuary, who explains that eating any meat should be morally equivalent to consuming a burger made from a Golden Retriever. Friedrich believes that all animals are sophisticated and that the animals we have chosen to eat, as opposed to the ones we’ve chosen to love, are arbitrary. In that vein, Friedrich states, “The pig in the slaughterhouse, edging past his hook-hanging brethren, is just as freaked out as your dog would be.” With both sides considered, Dolnik concludes that eating meat is unnecessary and writes that “veggies are tastier than ever.”