On Eating Roadkill, the Most Ethical Meat - Essay Example

An Analysis of “On Eating Roadkill, the most Ethical meat” by Brendan BuhlerMany people do not like eating road kill meat. This is because they think the meat is somehow contaminated, unethical, the animal that was killed was not meant for meat, has environmental implications, and also it is nasty and distasteful. Moreover, legal, practical, and culinary considerations from different states discourage people from cooking road kill (Buhler 1) However, eating road kill is as safe as eating any other meat from the game.

If the road kill meat was to be made more socially acceptable, many people would engage themselves in illegal activities of killing game animals and fake it as a road kill. Such activities would endanger the lives of game. Not all people would do this, but, unfortunately, some can kill game animals and sell the meat to various plants or butcheries. Such a situation can happen since it is hard to test whether an animal was hit by a car or met its death through any other way. Thus, making road kill meat more socially acceptable would not only cause unnecessary harm to animals, but also it might cause some people to drive in a more careless manner than before.

Some might argue that people would not risk their lives by hitting an elk, deer or moose, but, unfortunately, not all people are good.On the other hand, some researchers argue that factory-farmed meat has various effects on the environment. Therefore, road kill meat should be made permissible for as much as it is less harmful to the environment. Also, according to (Buhler 1) most road kill meat goes to waste since people do not consume it. By making it acceptable to eat road kill meat, the waste would be reduced, and less harm would be done to other animals.

Game meat is also the healthiest among other meat and eating it would save lots of cash in many families.If the road kill meat is not fresh and healthy, it can lead to various complications. One, it can lead to food borne illnesses. For instance, a deer killed by the roadside might offer risks of infections like Toxoplasmosis gondii, chronic wasting disease, and other deer specific infections. Moreover, other roads kill meat like raccoon and squirrel might be carrying diseases related to their species.

Another risk that might be experienced if people are allowed to eat road kill meat is bacterial contamination. Bacterial contamination occurs due to vehicular collision and considering that most ruminants have E. coli 0157, a chance for torn intestines and ruptured bladder leading to a gut spillage would be a concern.If eating road kill meat would be made obligatory and socially acceptable, the following guidelines should be taken into consideration. First, if a person happens to run over an animal, he or she should report to the game authorities before handling it.

Afterward, an inspection would be conducted to test if the animal were killed in a vehicular collision if possible. Also, if any person is caught being in possession of any animal feathers, skin, hooves, or any other things like teeth, he or she should be answerable to the responsible authority. The responsible authority should give a go ahead of whether the meat should be eaten or not. Before the road kill meat is slaughtered, a health inspection should be conducted. Roadkill education courses should be taught in every state to avoid unsafe handling of road kill meat.

On top of that, civilians should be routinely given advice on any risk associated with specific animals to avoid contamination.Works CitedBuhler, Brendan. “On Eating Roadkill, the Most Ethical Meat.” Modernfarmer.com, September 12, 2013. Web. 17 March 2015. < http://modernfarmer.com/2013/09/eating-roadkill/>.