Humane Slaughter: an Oxymoron?

One aspect missing from my research has been a truly critical look at the meat industry in the United States.  Therefore I signed up for an undergraduate class Fall quarter 2012 taught by Katie Gillespie through the Comparative History of Ideas (CHID) program at the UW.  I was very excited to take this class from the moment I read the syllabus description: Students enrolled in this course should gain a better understanding of the workings of the U.S. food system (at both an industrial and small scale) and the experience of animals within this system. Using animals in the food system as a case study, this course will explore notions of power and difference, ethics and responsibility, and creativity in reimagining the status quo. This course will push the boundaries of how we think about difference and discrimination and recognize the intersections between human and animal oppression.

I knew this class would fit perfectly into my research as I am looking at food spaces and one of these food spaces was that of the production of meat and dairy products.  One of the first books we read in class was 1984 by George Orwell and I wrote a think piece looking at how I practiced the concept of 'doublethink' and 'doublespeak' in my life.

Farmers Markets and CSA's

 

Living in the Pacific Northwest has its many advantages and one of those is the wealth of farmers markets and CSA (community supported agriculture) we have in the Seattle area and around the state.  Many farmers markets are seasonal and only occur for a limited amount of months, however, some markets are open year-round.  The same is true for farms offering CSA memberships; some offer them for a limited amount of months during peak season times and a limited winter season and others offer CSA membership year round.

These are in no order of preference, but offer some ideas of where you can find alternative market spaces around Washington state.

Dog Mountain Farm

For spring quarter 2012 I chose to yet again step outside the easy boundaries of my project and look further than alternative learning environments and food.  I chose to take a class on Tourism as Global Culture and chose to focus my work in this class on the rapidly rising agritourist form of literally consuming the tourist experience.

I began searching for an agritourist site in the Seattle area and discovered Dog Mountain Farm.  I sent an e-mail to Cindy Krepky explaining my project and asking for an opportunity to visit the farm and experience the space as an agritourist destination.  From the very beginning, David and Cindy, were wonderfully receptive to having my husband and I out to visit and experience all that Dog Mountain Farm had to offer.

Dog Mountain Farm - free slideshow maker with music

Oxbow and finding my serenity

I first met Sarah Cassidy via e-mail and I remember she 'signed' the e-mail with 'Peas, Sarah' and said I should come to their first spring SowDown at Oxbow Farm and we could chat.  Wendy Haakenson from Jubilee Farm (read about them here) had told me about Sarah and said I should be in touch with her as Oxbow Farm had an education center incorporated into their learning model.  At the time my project was focused on looking at farming as an education medium for kids.

The SowDown was so much fun and brought together several farms and organizations in the valley to share their information, knowledge and resources.  Dog Mountain Farm brought sweet baby animals to show off their meat and dairy production; Camp Korey came to share their passion for kids with medical conditions participating in summer camp; several local artists had come to help with painting, building fairy houses, creating banners and making flower head wreaths; and there was a chef demonstration by Greg Johnson the chef and father behind the wonderful blog: http://www.chefandfather.com/.  Best part:  finally being able to speak with Sarah for a few brief moments and her agreeing to meet and hear me out for the possibility of using Oxbow Farm as my primary research site for my Capstone Project.

Oxbow Sowdown - flash slideshow

I met Sarah several weeks later and she agreed to allow me to participate as a summer camp volunteer at Oxbow Farm, however, her stipulation was I had to attend the volunteer training offered by Wilderness Awareness School (WAS).  WAS is the partner group helping with the summer camps at Oxbow.

To be continued...