Switching to a vegan diet is often touted as the biggest way you can reduce your environmental impact but it’s not the only option – you can eat meat and still be connected to nature and that’s what The Ethical Butcher is all about. Founded by meat trader Farshad Kazemian and photographer, filmmaker and ex-vegetarian Glen Burrows, The Ethical Butcher works closely with farmers to promote regenerative farming methods and rear animals in a higher welfare way – sheep and cows are pasture-fed, birds are free-range, pigs are raised on a natural diet – making meat consumption more sustainable.
Not only are regenerative farming techniques, like organic silvopasture systems and holistic management, kinder to the animals, they increase the biodiversity of the land and help rebuild ecosystems. These methods can actually lock carbon back into the earth as well, which in turn improves soil health and helps to combat climate change; many farmers measure a net loss of carbon so they’re taking more from the atmosphere than their animals produce. And just how the terroir affects the taste and quality of wine, the environment in which animals are reared affects the taste and quality of meat. With farmers across the country producing meat for The Ethical Butcher, the flavour profiles differ from region to region, which makes for a unique and more interesting product offering.
When you buy meat from The Ethical Butcher you know exactly where it comes from and how it was reared as the The Ethical Butcher shares information on each farm and the methods they use, and it all comes to you in recyclable packaging – even the vacuum packs are fully compostable.
The Ethical Butcher also champions underused cuts of meat and offal alongside the prime and more popular cuts, including information on how to cook them, to ensure that every bit of the animal gets used. And with everything from individual items to meat boxes to pre-prepared joints like peri peri whole rolled chicken and butterflied ras el hanout lamb shoulder on offer, buying, cooking and eating meat ethically has never been easier.