Help! Meat Wars at my Coop

[Guest guest]

So FINALLY, my wonderful coop is starting to sell meat (a victory in itself

considering the sizeable vegan contingent). The referendum passed by the

membership in a recent vote allows the sale of ORGANIC meat only. However, at

the last general meeting (everyone is invited, but few--including me--attended)

they decided to change the meat guidelines from " organic " to " organic AND/OR

HUMANELY AND SUSTAINABLY RAISED. " The reason for this change, according to

management (who are also members) is that " 'organic' does not provide a clear

standard for meat products " and that many, smaller, local farms who pasture feed

their animals cannot afford to go through the lengthy and costly certification

process. What do you all think of this--is this true? I'm inclined to side

with the staff on this one (many of my co-members are horrified, btw) because

a) I'd rather eat pastured non-organic vs. organic grain fed

I tend to trust small family farmers for quality and honesty

c) " organic " is becoming a term that many huge food processors have used for

profit gain (i.e. HORIZON--my coop does not carry their milk, thank God)

d) I trust our meat buyer's sources research as I know they are committed to

grass fed meat

e) I don't know for sure, but I'm guessing that the original " organic meat only "

referendum was passed before any research on local and/or organic producers was

done.

Part of the upset has been because of the inattention to democratic process (the

meat buying guidelines were changed in a small meeting rather than in a

coop-wide vote). This being said, it looks like the whole membership may end up

voting on the guidelines change. On the surface, only " organic " looks really

good, and I would prefer organic AND pasture fed. However, if that isn't

available, I would like my coop to to have the option to purchase the best

pasture-fed meat it can and this is done by asking questions of the farmers we

buy from. Basically, I need to write a really good letter to the editor of our

coop paper to educate the membership about the importance of grass fed beef and

lamb. In fact, I would propose a new meat buying guideline: " PASTURE-FED,

HUMANELY, SUSTAINABLY, AND WHEN POSSIBLE, ORGANICALLY RAISED. " The larger issue,

of course, is the fact that " organic " is losing meaning these days...much like

" natural " did years ago.

Any thoughts/ideas on this, folks?

Thanks!