When you are excitedly digging into a fat, juicy, perfectly char-grilled steak, the brain is focused on producing happy little endorphins, not sobering, potentially guilt-ridden thoughts. Brief concerns over soaring cholesterol levels might be met with a defiant, “Back off brain… I’m busy eating!” Momentarily pondering over questionable factory farming practices could also easily be addressed with a flat-out, “Argh, can’t you see I’m in the middle of something pretty darned important?”
For those who are really dialed into their paleo-chomping ways, the last thing that they’re thinking is, “Gee, I wonder what happened to the rest of this cow?” During those times when consuming a peanut butter and jelly sandwich facilitates a bit more flexible cerebral contemplation, however, the story proves to be rather interesting.
Alas, unless you believe in recycling reincarnation, there is no happy ending for the bovines that end up on our dinner plates, but you might be blown away by the seemingly endless everyday products that their remains are used to create.
Looking Well Beyond the Steak on Your Plate
Discarded cattle parts, from bones to hides, can be repurposed in a surprising number of ways.