Slaughter or Harvest: What's in a word...

It's no secret that I'm pretty straightforward, blunt even. I've been known to get myself in trouble on more than one occasion. I suspect some things will never change no matter how many sticky predicaments I land myself in. I'm okay with that. If you aren't, then you are definitely in the wrong place. If there's one thing you can bank on with me, it is that I will always be straightforward with you. Talking in circles is for politicians. You deserve better. This is your food afterall.

I've watched diction morph over the last few years. Some prefer cutsie terms, namely harvest, to describe what I do. I detest this. Harvesting is for crops. Period. Glossing over the fact that an animal dies so we can eat meat is not only disrespectful to the animal but just plain scoffs in the face of transparency. The public can't handle it, they say. They'll eat less meat, they say. They don't want the truth, they say. Horse hockey I say! I firmly believe that you are not stupid. You see clearly behind such euphemisms and find them just as insulting as I do. Don't prove me wrong.

I do not disbatch in a harvest facility. I slaughter animals in my slaughterhouse so you can eat them. I then take that carcass and skillfully craft it into something beautiful that you take home to feed yourself, your family, and friends. There is no shame in this. I am unapologetic and unashamed of what I do, thus the chosen name for my blog.

Hiding behind kid'ish words like "harvest" flies in the face of my talents. It's insulting. It feels as if we're treated as the "dirty little secret" of the ag industry. Truth is, you livestock farmers wouldn't exist without us. This is a skillful calling. Glamorous it is not, oftentimes thankless, and it is hard work...plain and simple. That's something we should be proud of, not embarrassed by. I'll be damned if I dumb it down or gloss it over just to make it perceivably more palatable. Instead I choose to own it. I wear it proudly and wave it around for the neighbors to gawk at.

Stand up and be proud slaughter dudes and dudettes of the world. We do a job others can't or won't. We make it possible for them to savor a steak dinner on a Tuesday night. Good on us! Let's own it.

Slaughter or Harvest. Which do you prefer and why? Let's hash it out together.