Tonia spoke with Barry about this compelling book.
An eye-opening investigation of the commercial pork industry and an inspiring alternative to the way pigs are raised and consumed in America.
Barry Estabrook, author of the New York Times bestseller Tomatoland and a writer of “great skill and compassion” (Eric Schlosser), now explores the dark side of the American pork industry. Drawing on his personal experiences raising pigs as well as his keen investigative reporting, Estabrook shows how these immensely intelligent creatures are too often subjected to lives of suffering, sustained on a drug-laced diet just long enough to reach slaughter weight, then killed on mechanized disassembly lines. It doesn’t have to be this way, and Pig Tales presents a lively portrait of those farmers who are taking an alternative approach, proving that it is possible to raise pigs responsibly and respectfully in a way that is good for producers, consumers, and some of the top chefs in America. Provocative and richly informed, Pig Tales is bound to generate conversation at dinner tables across America.
After examining all things to do with hog farming, Barry concludes that pork is either the worst meat you can eat–or the very best. It all depends on how it is raised. He still eats bacon, but he’s very picky about what goes into his pan.
He was formerly a contributing editor at the late lamented Gourmet magazine. He has written for the the New York Times, the Washington Post, TheAtlantic.com, MarkBittman.com,Saveur, Men’s Health, Reader’s Digest, and pretty much anyone else who will take his stuff.
His article for Gourmet on labor abuses in Florida’s Tomato fields received the 2010 James Beard Award for magazine feature writing. Read it here. This blog also received the James Beard Award for best blog of the year.
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