New York Looks Forward to “Summer of Meat"

As appears in the French Culinary Institute's faculty newsletter, 
The Nilsletter

Catherine Davis
Editorial Intern
Published: June 11, 2010

Not too long ago, most cooks would have avoided buying locally raised, grass-fed meat as the unpredictable quality, particularly of beef and pork, was not worth the exorbitant prices. But in recent years, sustainability has become an issue of greater importance to both home cooks and professional chefs. Though sustainable vegetables have seen a more prominent rise in popularity, the meat world has been following suit, and is finally receiving noticeable recognition. Greater insistence on the humane treatment of animals, coupled with increasing health concerns and heightened environmental awareness, has put a spotlight on the meat industry that hasn’t been seen since Upton Sinclair first published The Jungle. “The public now understands a lot more about how industrial meat is produced,” Michael Hurwitz, director of the Greenmarket program, told the New York Times. The increase in supply is a result of an increase in demand. This increase in demand has allowed for producers to experiment, in terms of animal feed and breed, providing superior cuts of meat. While prices are still higher than those found at local supermarkets, the increase in competition is keeping costs reasonable.

Many New Yorkers have decided that the higher quality is worth the higher prices, and the city is seeing a resurgence of specialty butcher shops. “We don’t eat a lot of meat,” said Fred Scott, a patron of Maple Avenue Farms, “but if you’re going to, you might as well get the good stuff, right?” Now that Fresh Direct is offering locally raised meat and poultry to its customers, a lot more people may soon be enjoying “the good stuff.”