A debate that has been raging longer than the referendum campaign is unlikely to reach a satisfactory conclusion any time soon.
For the question about whether eating red meat is bad for our health elucidates more than just a straight yes or no answer.
Michael Mosley's television documentary, shown earlier this week, was a stark illustration that too much of the red stuff is not good for you, even when it is steak but especially when it is processed meat, such as bacon, pork sausages or ham.
After a month of consuming 130g a day (double his normal volume) as an experiment for the programme, Mosley's blood pressure shot up into the high range, his cholesterol rose significantly, and his waistline expanded with a 3kg gain in body fat concentrated around his middle. An astonishing decline in health in just four weeks.
Sustained consumption of processed red meat can significantly increase the risk of heart disease and colorectal cancer, and some experts say it can reduce life expectancy by five years (or one hour off your life for every bacon sarnie scoffed).
On the other hand, red meat (beef, lamb, pork) provides high levels of protein, including the complete range of amino acids, micronutrients iron, zinc and vitamin B12 (difficult to get from a plant-based diet). Indeed, beef mince was described as the "king of B12".
The high saturated fat content of beef and processed meat was interesting: the programme suggested it was not this, but the amino acid contained in the lean part of meat, that most affected the build-up of cholesterol.
The five most popular meat products in the UK are whole chicken, bacon, pork sausage, ham, and beef mince. Chicken was excluded from the programme on the premise it is not red meat. So top of the red meat shopping list of the vast majority of consumers is bacon. The curing process involves sugar, salt and sodium nitrite to help kill of bacteria. It is thought the latter reacts with amino acids, which can change the DNA of cells. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) created by carbonising or smoking meat can also, it is thought, react with DNA as it passes through the gastro-intestinal tract. The programme showed a colonoscope in action and what a polyp looks like before it turns cancerous.
The conclusion was that red meat is best when consumed in moderation. We were advised to introduce meatless days to our diet, and then eat only the best quality we can afford. That seems perfectly sensible to me. We are never going to turn into a veggie nation, but more of us are including plants in our diet; the proliferation of high-end artisan burger bars using good beef mince, and steak restaurants serving locally-sourced high-welfare beef, are welcome developments in the eating-out scene.
With the world population tipping seven billion and increasing demand for meat requiring an estimated 2.5 billion cattle by 2025 to feed everyone, the imperative to increase production is real. I doubt we will ever accept the idea of eating in-vitro beef burgers, cultured from cattle stem cells and launched on the world last year as a possible solution to global food shortages. Call me old-fashioned, but the thought of dispensing with farms and cattle so we can say no animal died in the making of this burger (or, as is sure to follow, steak) is anathema.
That said, there is evidence closer to home that we cannot rest on our laurels. Scotch beef has protected status and is renowned the world over for its unique quality, yet the Food Minister, farmers and Quality Meat Scotland acknowledge that livestock numbers are going down and beef farms are not profitable. There is concern that tight supply at this crucial time is impacting on the potential to capitalise on growing demand.
Meanwhile, a five-year transitional move from historic to area-based direct farm payments (described as the most radical redistribution of CAP payments ever, it will address the anomaly of inactive farmers and new entrants being frozen out) is coming in from 2015. So the launch this week of the Beef 2020 group's report on how the Scotch beef industry can revitalise is important. It contains 23 recommendations for industry and government. I hope it will ensure long term sustainable beef production in this country.
So, after chewing over the facts, I say yes to red meat and no to cheap imitations.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article