The Ethical Meat Handbook, Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition , livre ebook

Praise for The Ethical Meat Handbook, Revised Expanded Second Edition
Meredith Leigh is, in her own words, a lifelong pilgrim for food, but not just any food. She is a pilgrim for living food, real food, and food produced within intricately balanced natural systems, which, Leigh gently and elegantly reminds us, we can either live peacefully and humbly within or fight tooth and nail against. This book is for anyone looking to become an active, thoughtful participant in an intricate and always changing living system of food, community, and deliciousness.
- Camas Davis, executive director of the Good Meat Project, founder of the Portland Meat Collective
Community. Vitality. Deliciousness. The Ethical Meat Handbook is more than a dive into butchering, it s a look into our ecosystem and taking back our planet through good food and through mindful sourcing and eating in our day to day lives. Meredith Leigh has a visionary approach towards ethical slaughter, whole animal utilization, and being aware of the world around you. This book is an essential read for meat eaters, and non-meat eaters alike, as it is a head first dive into our agricultural system that sheds light on the age-old importance of raising, and eating, healthy and sustainable livestock.
- William S. Dissen, executive chef and owner of The Market Place Restaurant, Haymaker Restaurant, and Billy D s Fried Chicken
This book is practical, yes, but it s also deeply personal. Meredith Leigh will teach you how to raise animals, butcher them, and cook and cure their meat. Even better, she explains what it means and why it matters, and her passion is infectious. After reading this book, I longed to smell the deep funk of the barn, to feel the squish of mud beneath my chore boots, to heft a butcher knife in my hand.
- Mark Essig, author of Lesser Beasts: A Snout-to-Tail History of the Humble Pig
Meredith Leigh is an unassuming superhero of the meat supply chain. She has taken a subject so often presented in the extreme either in the toughness of the butcher or the evilness of the industry to begin with and presented the nuance of real life while pulling no punches; delivering on every single point. In the tale of the life, death, and consumption of the animal to sustain us, Leigh alternates between the role of hands on expert, social and environmental activist, and inspired poet. Apply Leigh s comprehensive research and practical knowledge to your food choices then apply her style of living, learning, and teaching to whatever you do next.
- Joshua Lewin, chef and owner of Juliet and Peregrine
For the growing number of people looking to eat better meat, this book is invaluable: deeply thoughtful while accessible and pragmatic. It asks the right questions and answers them brilliantly.
- Nicolette Hahn Niman, author of Defending Beef and Righteous Porkchop.
The Ethical Meat Handbook is an inspirational must-read for anyone who eats food. Meredith Leigh champions for the respectful and ethical treatment of animals and those who raise and grow our food. This is thoughtful book for meat eaters and vegetarians alike.
- Cassidee Dabney, The Barn at Blackberry Farm
The Ethical Meat Handbook , 2 nd Edition elegantly invites the reader, as an eater, to consider food systems and how our choices (not always easy) can be the most radical thing we can do in regard to the health of our planet, our soils, our farmers, our communities, and ourselves. This is a must read for anyone looking to find something they can do at the home level to impact our planet s crisis positively. Leigh deftly and elegantly helps us, the consumers of food, understand the intricacies of the production of our food and consumption habits. She paints an honest, yet hopeful picture. The Ethical Meat Handbook , 2 nd Edition is wise, practical, and flexible, offering the reader a chance to dip in to any aspect from husbandry and butchery to charcuterie or nose to tail cooking.
- Kirsten K. Shockey, food educator and author of Fermented Vegetables and Miso, Tempeh, Natto, and other Tasty Ferments
I was only pages into reading when I was both surprised and delighted to realize that what I thought was a glorified cookbook was a much more dignified and intellectual look at the farm-to-table meat industry. I will definitely keep this book in my arsenal of educational tools, and I know I ll will refer to it again and again.
- Brianna Hagell, owner/head butcher of Vessel Meats and local food advocate
As a chef or anyone who gives a damn about the preparation and consumption of food, this book is a must-read. Witnessing Meredith mindfully slaughter a hogette from start to finish was a profound and emotional experience that I only fully realized after reading her words. She understands the complexity of our modern-day food system and offers real-life, unabashedly honest, informative, no bull shit possibilities towards ethical, sustainable, and delicious change.
- Ann Kim, Chef, owner of Young Joni, Pizzeria Lola, Hello Pizza, and Sooki Mimi
This is an essential guide for anyone interested in where their food comes from and how to start raising it for themselves. It s a perfect reference book, covering topics such as; how our food should be produced, good animal husbandry and how that benefits us all, excellent photos with clear and thorough descriptions of full carcass, nose to tail butchery, and it even has some great recipes. Meredith Leigh shows us how we can all make a difference in our local communities and benefit from a symbiotic relationship with our Mother Earth.
- Louisa Halewell, owner of Little Black Pig
The Ethical Meat Handbook is not just a carnivores guide to meat. It provides keen insight on our responsibility to the land, agriculture, and the Farmers that tend to it; it takes a deep dive into Food Access, Food Privilege, and what it means to redefine the way we approach meat preparation from slaughter to plate. This work is an eye-opener with regards to respectfully approaching the animals that sacrifice life for our sustenance as well as our bodies by reimagining the American dining experience.
- Elle Scott, founder of SheChef Inc
The Ethical Meat Handbook is at once profound, poetic, and practical. Those of us who care deeply about the nourishment we give our bodies, the compacts we make with other living beings, and the future of this earth, realize that ours must be an ever-evolving understanding of what is right, sustainable, and good. In this, the second edition of her masterwork, Meredith Leigh shares new information for our decision making, deeper insights for our spirit, and thoughtfully crafted recipes for our tables, as well as for our lives.
- Ronni Lundy author of Victuals, An Appalachian Journey with Recipes , James Beard Cookbook of the Year, 2017
The second edition of Meredith Leigh s The Ethical Meat Handbook is a poetic call to action for every modern day omnivore. What a relief to have a tool that isn t just some morose view on what s wrong with the food system but rather a practical instruction manual on how to contribute to lasting change. These pages are packed within critical information for every meat consumer from professional butchers, to novice culinary enthusiasts. Meredith s incredible attention to detail and respect for every living microorganism in the ecosystem is apparent in every chapter. Leigh takes an honest and balanced look at current farming systems a produces a fun guide to sourcing, purchasing, utilization, and fun recipes for all meat. She doesn t act as the ultimate authority with all the answers, rather shares her findings and invites the reader to embark on a journey with her even past what is between these pages. This educational text reads like you re having a coffee with your favorite person.
- Mavis-Jay Sanders, executive chef and social equity advocate
Meredith Leigh has given us a refreshing and holistic perspective in The Ethical Meat Handbook . Even as a professional chef I feel challenged decoding which meats align with my ideals. The information in this book has empowered me to make more informed choices and somehow at the same time left me feeling like I had dinner in the home of a very heartfelt and thoughtful cook.
- Mike Lata Chef, co-owner of FIG and The Ordinary

Copyright 2020 by Meredith Leigh.
All rights reserved.
Cover design by Diane McIntosh. Cover Photo by Erin Adams/ Cover illustration (lamb) by Rob Hunt.
All interior photographs Cindy Kunst
Printed in Canada. First printing November, 2019.
Inquiries regarding requests to reprint all or part of The Ethical Meat Handbook, Second Edition should be addressed to New Society Publishers at the address below. To order directly from the publishers, please call toll-free (North America) 1-800-567-6772, or order online at www.newsociety.com
Any other inquiries can be directed by mail to:
New Society Publishers
P.O. Box 189, Gabriola Island, BC V0R 1X0, Canada
(250) 247-9737
L IBRARY AND A RCHIVES C ANADA C ATALOGUING IN P UBLICATION
Title: The ethical meat handbook : from sourcing to butchery, mindful meat eating for the modern omnivore / Meredith Leigh.
Names: Leigh, Meredith, 1983- author.
Description: Revised expanded second edition. | Includes index.
Identifiers: Canadiana (print) 20190176091 | Canadiana (ebook) 201901760105 | ISBN 9780865719231 (softcover) | ISBN 9781550927160 (PDF) | ISBN 9781771423120 (EPUB)
Subjects: LCSH: Cooking (Meat) | LCSH: Meat-Moral and ethical aspects. | LCSH: Meat industry and trade-Moral and ethical aspects. | LCSH: Meat industry and trade-Environmental aspects. | LCSH: Slaughtering and slaughter-houses-Moral and ethical aspects. | LCGFT: Cookbooks.
Classification: LCC TX749 .L44 2020 | DDC 641.6/6-dc23

New Society Publishers mission is to publish books that contribute in fundamental ways to building an ecologically sustainable and just society, and to do so with the least possible impact on the envi