The Gist: Good morning VegNews Book Clubbers! I am actually reporting from Toledo, OH this week, so you will not hear from me for the remainder of the week. Not to worry! VN Managing Editor Elizabeth Castoria will take over moderation and summarizing our discussion at the end of the week.We are nearing the end of Mad Cowboy, and will be discussing chapters six and seven this week. In chapter six, "Biotech Bullies," Lyman covers the dairy industry and provides an introduction to recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH)—a drug used to increase milk production. Multi-national corporation Monsanto was the main force behind rBGH, which was clearly a risk to the health of both humans and cows, yet the hormone was still able to get passed by the FDA due to shady negotiations. The seventh chapter, "Bovine Planet," goes into detail about the environmental effects of animal industry, including deforestation, pollution, and fresh water shortage.
The Discussion: Here are a couple discussion points for these two information-packed chapters. I look forward to reading your thoughts!
1. (Chapter 6) Lyman brings up the fact that we are losing about 150,000 family farms a year. If factory farms never existed, and all of our food was grown or produced on family farms, would you be a vegan/vegetarian? Do you think the concept of veganism would still exist?
2. (Chapter 7) Lyman states that we could feed so many more people with a plant-based diet than a meat-based diet. Do you think that once the population outgrows the amount of resources available to sustain it, we will have no other choice but to switch to a plant-based diet—for those who haven't already?
The Assignment: Read the rest of Mad Cowboy for the July 26 discussion.
~VN Book Club Hostess Lyndsay Orwig
