By Iulia Padeanu, News Editor -

Jonathan Safran Foer gave a talk last week in the Vanderslice Cabaret Room as part of his book tour for his latest non-fiction work “Eating Animals.”

The young author is best known for his bestselling novels “Everything is Illuminated” and “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.” In his latest book, however, Foer moves away from fiction and instead gives a detailed account of the production and consumption of meat in what are known as “factory farms.” Foer did not dwell on the philosophical aspects of the question of eating meat but focused more on the practical.

“This book is an investigation of the rational part of ourselves, which is a good part of ourselves,” Foer said. “But, it can only be allowed to be a good part of ourselves if we incorporate it into our conversations. ”

Foer tried vegetarianism many times in his life, starting at the early age of nine, and has always been concerned with the issues that arise from factory farming and mass production of meat. It was not until he reached fatherhood that he decided it was time to make basic choices about what he felt was right and stick with them.

“The first step was to go to a nutritionist,” Foer said. “There is nothing I care more than the health of my kids. I would do many unethical things to keep my kids healthy.”

Once he made sure that a vegetarian lifestyle was just as healthy, if not healthier, for his children, Foer chose to raise his family without meat at the dinner table. He also continued researching the meat production industry, for his own personal knowledge, which he transcribed into his latest work of non-fiction.

His latest book speaks about mainstream American values but confines them to the topic of food––meat in particular. The mass production of meat is detrimental to the animals individually, but Foer argues that it is also detrimental to the environment as a whole. Not once throughout the entire book tour has anyone defended the farming practices Foer disagrees with. Most people agree that cruelty to animals is bad, just like most people agree that damaging the environment is detrimental to our health, but few people actually do something to stop it.

“Many people think it’s perfectly right to eat animals, but would never do it, because of the way we raise them and the environmental effects they have.”

Foer hopes to at least start discussion about the country’s eating habits. He does not hope to change individual values but does hope to influence people’s habits. The choices consumers have in a supermarket are not always between free range, organic meat and factory-produced meat. Foer draws attention to the less obvious third choice – a nice, juicy vegetable.

Some argue that small farms do not use the same practices Foer outlines in his argument against factory farming, and locally grown products actually help sustain the economy and do not harm the environment.

“In certain ways organic is better, but in terms of animal welfare, there is no animal welfare when it come to poultry, pigs and cattle,” Foer said. “If you were forced at gun point in a supermarket to buy either unlabeled meat or organic meat you should buy organic. But why do people feel compelled to choose between those two things? No one is holding a gun to your head.”

Foer also spoke about the need to control our appetites. In recent years we have imported our eating habits to countries such as India and China, and with the ever-rising population, the demand for food will continue to rise. While most people argue that factory farming helps feed the increasing populations, Foer believes it is in fact “starving the world,” as huge amounts of energy is poured in the production of meat.

“Six to 26 calories of food are necessary to make one calorie of meat,” Foer said. “It is a very wasteful process.”

The overarching goal of Foer’s latest book is ultimately to encourage people to stop consuming the factory farmed meat that is found in most of the supermarkets and the majority of the restaurants. He does however urge his readers not to think in terms of absolutes.

“It’s a mistake to think in absolutist terms,” Foer said. “Just because we cannot be vegetarians should not mean we don’t do anything. We don’t live our lives in the inside flaps of philosophy textbooks. We live in the real world, where everyone is a hypocrite, and it is just a question of lessening your hypocrisy a little bit.”

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, Foer also explains that the physical food present at the table should not be the most important thing. He urges his audience to really think about what they are thankful for and what this holyday means to them and their families. Growing up with a grandmother who always loved cooking for him, he found it difficult to say no to her, when she would offer him meat.

“My grandmother was the type of person who was best at expressing love through food,” Foer said. “But as it turns out it’s not really the food that is the vessel of her love. It is not the physical food that was the most important. It is the physical apron that she ties behind her back, her fingerprints on the front of it, the smell of food when you walk in the door, knowing that she’s been cooking for hours before you came and the heat from the stove in the kitchen that has been on for hours. It’s all in the gesture.”

Foer also expressed concern about the low standard of high school lunches, provided for students at public schools. The current total cost for one meal is just a little under a dollar. For only a few dollars more student’s lunches could be improved significantly.

Foer ended on a positive not, expressing a strong belief that if consumers are provided with enough information about the way their meat is produced, they will eventually be able to say no to factory farming products.