Readers React: History of mystery meat is another reason to go vegan

To the editor: After I viewed countless videos of the slaughter of cattle and poultry that would render any remotely compassionate individual weakened by the cruelty experienced by these animals, I became an ethical vegetarian; now I’m a vegan. I joined others who did not wish to be complicit in such abuse. (“How we went from beef on the hoof to mystery meat in a box,” op-ed, Aug. 2)

After reading Anastacia Marx de Salcedo’s riveting account of the history of how “mystery meat” came to be widely consumed after years of development for military use, I am sure I made the correct decision. I trust others will follow suit.

Elaine Livesey-Fassel, Los Angeles

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To the editor: According to the writer, until recently the average beef-eating American feasted on traditional bone-in cuts of beef like porterhouse and T-bone steaks. These easily identifiable cuts not only meant a consumer could tell what part of a beef carcass her meal came from, but as a consequence, it also provided “a vital clue as to its overall fitness for consumption.”

We are to understand that “only the poor gnawed on unrecognizable remnants, mostly in stews and soups.”

The combination of arrogance and ignorance in this statement is extraordinary. Then and now, most of us cannot afford to dine at Delmonico’s.

And if anyone is squeamish about using all the meat in a carcass, I can only advise that the person never eat a taco de cabeza, kielbasa or wurst, or dine in any community where wasting good food from a slaughtered animal is considered a sin.

Andy Rieber, Adel, Ore.

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