 (1).png){kind=spacer}
3 months ago
21
Scientists routinely call for countries to slaughter fewer animals to help cut carbon emissions, but one scientist may have a more realistic solution.
Dr Tennessee Randall, a consumer psychologist at Swansea University, says we should be eating more offal – the internal organs such as the heart, liver and kidneys.
Despite being packed with protein, vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids, offal is underused and often wasted.
And the more parts of the animal we eat, the fewer we have to slaughter overall to feed the world's growing population.
'Eating more offal could lower the number of animals that are killed for food and so the greenhouse gases produced by the meat industry,' Dr Randall said in a piece for The Conversation.
Dr Randall's new study found an offal-enriched portion is more acceptable to UK consumers than offal in its typical form.
In experiments with nearly 400 volunteers, spaghetti Bolognese consisting of offal mixed with standard beef mince proved the biggest hit.
I recreated the dish in my own kitchen to see how it compares to my normal recipe – and was pleasantly surprised.
In experiments with nearly 400 volunteers, spaghetti Bolognese consisting of offal mixed with standard beef mince proved a hit - so I'm trying the dish myself
My first job is finding offal on the high street, which is easier said than done.
Amazingly, when I ask the man in my nearest butchers for 'offal' – Whole Foods in Kensington – he doesn't know what on Earth I'm talking about.
Even after I say the word 'offal' about six times, he has a confused look on his face as if I am speaking a new language.
It's only when I explain 'heart, liver, kidney' that he says 'we don't have that'.
Thankfully, I have more luck at Marks and Spencer, where there's lamb's liver, as well as and pork lung and heart (albeit in the form of haggis).
Another good thing about offal is it's pretty cheap compared with cuts of flesh, largely because consumer demand is so low. Much of the offal produced in the UK is exported because of this.
My 250g of lambs liver is £1.69 – less than half the price of regular lamb meat!
Back at my laboratory kitchen, I combine my offal mix with an equal quantity of beef mice and cook it to my usual Bolognese recipe, with a 'soffritto' base of carrot, onion, celery, herbs and tomato.
Eating offal is nothing new - it was once a popular food in Britain during WWII, but its potential to help the climate crisis may have been overlooked. Pictured, my combination of lamb's liver, pork lung and beef mince
Offallly good: Offal spag bol has lovely consistency, much thicker and creamier-looking than my normal beef mince Bolognese
Why is meat bad for the planet?
Meat-heavy diets risk the health of our planet, as livestock farming on a massive scale destroys habitats and generates greenhouse gases.
Animal agriculture contributes to global warming because of the methane, nitrous oxide and carbon emissions - not just emitted by the animals themselves but the process of packing and transporting their meat.
Also, the clearing of trees to make way for grazing cattle reduces carbon sequestration (trees capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide).
Of course, eating offal still requires farmed and slaughtered animals - but eating more offal could at least reduce the rate at which animals are farmed and slaughtered.
Excitingly, as it simmers it develops a lovely consistency, much thicker and creamier-looking than my normal slow-cooked meat sauce.
After about 30 minutes on a low boil I slosh it over some buttered spaghetti and top it with grated cheese and black pepper.
The sauce has a deep, rich and complex flavour – sweet and slightly earthy with plenty of satisfying umami notes, while the odd chunks of liver give it extra bursts of minerally meatiness (which I admit is not to everybody's taste).
I've never had a problem with the flavour of offal before now, but I don't normally buy it because I'm never sure what to do with it.
But this experiment has shown me something really quite obvious – offal can substitute meat flesh in just about any recipe.
As well as spag bol, Dr Randall's experiments also used offal to make meatballs, burgers, shepherd's pie, and chicken and liver curry.
Of course, eating offal is nothing new – it was once a popular food in Britain during the Second World War – but its potential to help the climate crisis may have been overlooked.
Based on my experience, there's not nearly enough offal in the shops, but this might have something to do with 'social acceptance'.
Offal is simply the term for the various internal organs of butchered animals such as the heart, liver and kidneys (file photo)
Interestingly, there may be certain stigma attached to eating offal – namely regarding it as an 'old person's dish'.
'We found that people who were more likely to control how they were viewed by others formed more negative opinions of offal-enriched meals,' said Dr Randall.
'This type of social interaction is known as "impression management" and has been shown to influence food choices.'
The study also found men felt more positive about eating 'pure' offal than women, whereas men and women expressed similar opinions about eating offal combined with minced meat.
'In reality, eating more of the animal could support a healthy diet and could be a more achievable recommendation for sustainable eating, especially for the men who love their meat,' the academic added.
