As detailed in my last blog, I wanted to focus on highlighting some rising star people of color (POC) in the meat industry for my next few blogs, but as the world turns, so do I. I decided to make a shift this month to make mention of some more recent events.

No matter what side of the fence you sit on, I think we should all take a minute to pause, reflect and celebrate the momentous occasion that is the first woman of color to be nominated as the Vice Presidential nominee for either party. Even if she may be on the opposite side of the fence from you, there are in fact POC on both sides and as the nation has been discussing, increased diversity is needed throughout all levels and in all positions in the United States; so it is in fact something we should all be celebrating.

Now, I understand that some of you may feel that this pick (should this come fruition) is not a good one for the meat industry, and I’m going to point out a few reasons why I think it might actually be a good pick for our industry. First the background:

“I’ve got some red meat for you.”

Last week in front of a crowd in Iowa, Vice President Mike Pence declared that he would not let Kamala Harris “cut America’s meat.” The premise to his statements were a statement she made during the fall Democratic debates in which she said “Yes. Yes, I would,” to a question on whether she’d support changing dietary guidelines to specifically reduce red meat.

And I’ve got beef with you…“I love cheeseburgers.”

Alternatively, here are five facts that send a different message.

1. Kamala eats meat; she has even said she loves cheeseburgers.

2. She’s an avid protein cook. It has been reported in Glamour magazine that one of her favorite dinners is a roasted chicken.

3. While she supports environmental issues, I can’t find any evidence that she is far left on this issue, and I find her to be quite moderate and commonsense.

4. She voted "yes" on the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018.

5. She’s the daughter of immigrants and would likely support immigration policy reform which would be beneficial for providing our industry with needed workers.

Overall, I believe what she was advocating by saying that she would support changes to the dietary guidelines to reduce meat, was that Americans need more incentive to better balance their eating habits and have better health outcomes. The latter is a point that I believe we can all agree upon, and is something doctors, nurses, nutritionists and dieticians have been telling us for some time (even if we don’t believe in the proposed method to do that). Overall, I think this was a statement with unintended consequences that was misused by the media and opposing party.

Finally, I quite frankly think Biden/Harris have bigger agenda items on their radar, and I think the meat industry could quietly go under the radar under a new administration if not benefit (again, see points on immigration reform).

Even if you still don’t agree with me and you think that she/they are a bad choice for meat, I hope that you will go out and vote.

What do you think? If there was a governmental change, do you think it’d be good, bad or indifferent for our industry?

Don’t be fooled

Join for free* to continue reading.