[frmersdog]

People say this, but I always wonder if some rejiggering of the revenue allocation calculus might make it possible to keep chicken cheap while paying the workers a living wage. All you'd have to do is make a handful of executives very disappointed when they open the letter containing their tax bill - or when a federal law enforcement agent knocks on their door.

[gwbas1c]

I think we're more likely to see AI-based automation further take humans out of the loop at chicken factories.

That being said: I personally think it makes more sense to lower the cost of plant-based proteins. It's always going to be cheaper when we eat the plants directly instead of having an animal convert the plant to protein.

[frmersdog]

For protein. That doesn't account for micronutrients. For better or worse, humans are omnivores. We might be able to live on less meat. (Collectively-speaking; this individual weightlifts and accumulates injuries like crazy if he doesn't eat enough meat, sorry.)

[gwbas1c]

There's no facts in that argument: Meat is cultural, and we like it because it tastes good. There's no nutritional need for micronutrients from meat.

(This person still eats plenty of meat... Because it tastes good.)

[frmersdog]

That's incorrect.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1747-0080.12...

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10305646/

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-93100-3

There's also an issue of lower fat/connective tissue content in plant-based meats (again, necessary to support joint and muscle recovery). Also, IIRC, the fats and oils in meat hold up better to high-temperature cooking than the ones in meat analogues. Best I can do is go pescatarian (which has its own issues at-scale).

[gwbas1c]

> plant-based meats

They are processed food. I'm under no illusion that they are healthy.

I won't say I've never had them, but I generally turn my nose up at them and stick with real animal flesh or traditional vegetarian food.

[hulitu]

No. The profits _must_ grow.