One could certainly not make a solid claim that I am one of the masses living in apathy and denial that just because someone is allowed to sell it/buy it then it must be good for you (or even ok for you for that matter).
However there are certain things that one knows are just horrid but one finds it rather hard to resist them at every juncture.
One of these things is the good old humble meat pie.
A piping hot, readily available traditional NZ meal on the run.
Behold; The Pie.
When I was young I liked pies but they were easier to avoid then because the majority of them had PEAS in them. Now days I like peas but that is mostly because I can cook them how I like and how I don't like them is steamed-to-crap* all day in a boiling hot pie until they are mushy and bring to mind the texture of perished elastic.
These days most pies I happen to encounter at most junctures do not contain peas.
Most of us think of pies as gloriously lush meaty goodness encased in delicious pastry and feel very little inclination (in an ignorance-is-bliss kinda way) to limit one's consumption of said (alleged!) meaty goodness.
Some of us are more educated (ie: not in denial) and are fully conscious of the fact that pies probably (in the very least) contain at least a golf ball of fatty lard per hand sized pie (and know that this does not include the pastry...) *drool*
And some of us (and when I say us here I actually mean me) are not apathetic to the wily and comsumeristic nature of the business world and have an inkling that there is much darker business at hand than this and generally liek to not dwell on this as we know if we did we would eat them even less than we already sensibly do (or don't as the case may be!).
Well... for the sake of an interesting blog entry I must dwell and you should listen.
In the olden days, pies and sausages and such were actually made with up to 85% MEAT, with some bread crumbs and herbs and such thrown in. Now days these kind of pies and sausages are more for the high end market and the general everyday mass produced pie are made very differently.
Excuse the pun but I am not going to MINCE words here... in NZ and Aussie, for a meat pie to be a meat pie it must only contain 25% of actual MEAT and (it should be more disturbing to note) the species of animal from which the meat is derived must be identified in the ingredients list (the reason for adding this wee snippet will become clearer down further...).
This in itself is quite a thought when one thunks on it but it is actually (and rather sickeningly) not the worst of it and not even the worst of it when you find out that most pies actually don't even have THAT much meat.
Tests have been done and consumer watch dogs are monitoring pies and weighing and recording the MEAT content of MEAT pies down under.
Yes. I did say that was not the worst of it... I am compelled (and I do not apologise!) to put this thought in your head...
There is the horrible and quite disgustifying fact that the vitally critical and important factor here (and if you are determined to continue enjoying your MEAT PIE treats please look away RIGHT NOW) is that the very DEFINITION OF MEAT needs to also be pondered upon and considered!
AND I AM NOT JOKING.
If you are an in-denial-pie-eater and you have gone as far as to accept the fact that pies contain at least a golf ball of fat and still indulge yourself every now and then accepting consquences and such, please keep in mind that you would not be silly to assume that the very least percentage of the MEAT in the food industry's definition of meat** (which the pie makers, who are, after all, out to make money NOT actually provide you with a good wholesome healthy nutritional meal) is actually the thing YOU consider to be >>MEAT<<.
NB: This is so much of a concern that currently there is an application before the food standards board of Australia to amend the Definition of Meat Pies "to ensure that meat pies can only contain ‘meat flesh’ and not just ‘meat’."
This is obviously one of those tough issues to resolve (bringing to my mind the similar but on a vastly more grand and sinister scale issue of the sugar industry conspiracy) because the application is dated as being recieved Sept 2003...
* steamed-to-crap is not at all swearing and is, in fact, a technical culinary term...
**meat means the whole or part of the carcass (the whole carcass including, you know... BITS) of any buffalo, camel, (CAMEL!!!!!!!) cattle, deer, goat, hare, pig, poultry, rabbit or sheep, slaughtered other than in a wild state, but (thankfully...) does not include –
(a) the whole or part of the carcass of any other animal (umm... after reading that I am too flabbergasted to actually call to mind ANY other animal...) unless permitted for human consumption under a law of a State, Territory or New Zealand; or
(b) avian eggs, or foetuses or part of foetuses.
errr... pie anyone (you can have mine!!!)
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