Moral Meat

Some folks have asked for more details about Moral Meat and how it will operate, so we wanted to take this opportunity to give you more information:

How is this meat treated more humanely?
The founding philosophy of Moral Meat is the humane treatment of the animal at every stage. What that means is that, while it’s excellent to have grass-fed or even organic meat, those distinctions do not cover the full range of the animal’s treatment.
Our animals will:

1) Be free- or pasture-raised and grass fed. This means that will live the way animals are supposed to live- out in a field, eating grass that they can walk around freely to get. During the winter, some animals may be housed in a barn and fed stored grass or hay (we are trying to avoid grain for the most part and there will be no corn, which is destructive to the digestive system of cattle). This is necessary for them to stay out of the cold! They will never be in feed-lots or pumped with hormones or anti-biotics.

2) Be safely transported. They will not be crammed into cattle cars or trucks but transported safely and as comfortably as possible. All transport is somewhat stressful to the animal, since it does not understand what’s happening. We will therefore work to minimize this stress and give the animal time to relax after being transported.

3) Slaughtered humanely and painlessly. Animals will not be present when other animals are being slaughtered. Additionally, we are working with various consultants to utilize a slaughter method that causes minimal stress to the animal. Animals are not lifted off their feet, which cause great distress. This will not be a “conveyor belt” slaughter, with animals being rushed in and out to make quota. Animals will be moved with a minimum of stress and will have the proper time, care and attention devoted to them to make sure everything goes smoothly and painlessly.

Where does the meat come from?
We are currently working with several farms in New York State to be the providers of our beef, cattle and poultry. These are all family run operations who work under the same guiding principles we do and believe in our philosophy.

What’s the cost?
The cost depends on the “product”, since it will depend both on our volume and on the transportation and slaughter costs, which vary slightly with each event. But we are hoping to provide this meat for no more than what you pay in the supermarket now, certainly much less than what grass-fed, free-range meat sells for. There may eventually be a yearly fee for joining the co-op, which we estimate to be around $25 per person.

Where will/can the meat be picked up?
We will do our best to accommodate all customer members as best we can. Currently, our pick-up is in Park Slope,  Brooklyn, with more to follow with sufficient interest.

How can we contact you?
For now, the best way to contact us is through admin*at*moralmeat*dot*org If you want to talk to someone on the phone, please email your name, phone number and any questions you have and someone will get in touch with you.

How can I help?
Ah, the million dollar question! No co-op can function without the help of its members. We will certainly need folks to staff the pick-up points on days when meat comes in. We may also need volunteers to help with logistics, orders, and potentially even accompanying the meat from the farm to NYC on occasion. If you have something specific you’d like to do, please let us know.

When will you start?
We started! We provided free-range, grass-fed beef in August of 2009 and are currently taking orders for upcoming offerings.

Upcoming Events
Beef! Take a look.

With blessings and thanks,

Simon Feil
Moral Meat, Administrator