On Eggs, Etc.

I bought my first carton of truly Organic Free Range eggs today. I had been buying the Free Range Eggs at Trader Joe's, and felt ok about it, but then I read The Omnivore's Dilemma, by Michael Pollan. It was really a wonderful book, one of the first books in years that I literally couldn't put down. I learned that Free Range eggs aren't really free range; rather, they have "access" to the outdoors for the last two weeks of their lives via a small door that they wouldn't think to open. In general, egg-laying hens are the domesitcated animal that is really treated the worst. They are in a cramped cage their whole short lives, and they often rub their chests up against the cage until they bleed. Mr. Pollan is not a vegetarian, but he grapples with the idea throughout his journey exploring where our food comes from, and how it can be sustainable. His account of his week on a sustainable farm in Virginia is the best part of the book. Through his experiences, he points out that in nature things grow and die and feed themselves, and there is no such thing as waste. Polyface Farm has the same theory of farming. By using plants and animals in a harmonious and symbiotic way, the farm has almost no expenses, and huge profits. The cows eat the grass, then leave behind manure. After 2 days, the hens are brought in to eat the fly larvae in the patties, which makes them very happy, and creates strong, protein-filled eggs. The pigs, cows, chickens, and rabbits rotate the land and keep it alive. And they are allowed to be pigs, cows, chickens, and rabbits, until the end. It was pretty cool.

What I got from reading the book was that I will now be buying eggs for $3.29 a carton. And, I need to find a farm in Washington state like Polyface if I'm ever going to eat meat.