THE WORLD'S LARGEST BIRD-THE OSTRICH- TASTES MORE LIKE RED MEAT THAN FOWL, AND OSTRICH FARMING IS MORE ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY.
Ostrich. It’s what’s for dinner . . .
At least that’s what Alexander McCoy hopes. McCoy is a banker who turned ostrich farmer after training for an Ironman competition.
MCCOY: “I was in South Africa, and I found this 97 percent fat-free red meat, and I pretty much just started eating it daily.”
Ostriches are the world’s largest birds. But their meat does not taste like chicken. Instead, it resembles beef in taste, color and texture. So it could be a way for Americans to eat burgers and steaks without doing as much harm to their own health or the environment.
McCoy says ostriches do not require as much land as grass-fed cows. And the birds don’t produce as much climate-warming methane when they digest their food.
Most ostrich is currently consumed in other parts of the world. The birds have not been popular in the U.S. since the early 1900s, when feathers were a hot trend in the fashion industry.
But as more Americans reduce their beef consumption for health and environmental reasons, they may be willing to try ostrich. McCoy is optimistic.
Ostrich. It's what's for dinner.CLICK TO TWEETMCCOY: “It’s a healthy, sustainable, delicious red meat, and that’s kind of the holy grail for Americans.”
Reporting credit: Andrew Lapin/ChavoBart Digital Media.
Photo: Courtesy of Alexander McCoy.
This article was originally shared by Yale Climate Connections.
https://www.yaleclimateconnections.org/2016/08/cooking-ostrich-for-dinner/
