It’s an uncomfortable question that seems easy to answer: most people I know consider themselves animal lovers. If you ask on the street, you are likely to find people who reject cruelty to animals and disapprove of the meat industry. So why do we continue to consume meat, eggs and dairy, products that come from these same animals that we say we love and respect?
The reality is that we find ourselves trapped in a kind of “ethical juggling act” that allows us to navigate the contradiction of loving animals and, at the same time, financing their suffering. This dilemma is not just an individual choice; is the result of a multi-billion dollar meat industry that knows exactly how to manipulate our perception of animals.
THE LOVE FOR ANIMALS BEGINS IN CHILDHOOD
Many of us grew up surrounded by toys and books with animals as protagonists. From a young age, we learn to value the company and affection of animals, whether through companion animals or the stories of other animals.
A recent study in the United Kingdom revealed that children often view farm animals as equal to their pets and believe they deserve the same respect and care. However, as we grow, something changes. We learn to separate farm animals from others and assume that it is okay to love and consume them at the same time. How does this change occur? The answer lies in the carefully crafted marketing strategies and messages of the meat industry, which operates silently to undermine our feelings of empathy and compassion toward animals.
We learn to separate farm animals from others and assume that it is okay to love and consume them at the same time. How does this change occur? Photo: We Animals Media
THE MEAT INDUSTRY AND ITS STRATEGIES TO ELIMINATE ANIMALS
According to Professor Arran Stibbe, an expert in Ecological Linguistics, the industry uses three key techniques: vacuum, trace and mask.
The gap is the deliberate omission of animals in the discourse about meat. They sell us the product as something appetizing and of high quality, but there is no mention of where it comes from, who the animal was or the conditions in which it lived. It’s as if animals had never existed.
The trail shows us just an echo of the animals, perhaps in the form of a blurry image or an indirect reference. It is a subtle way to evoke their presence without confronting us with the reality of their lives.
The mask turns the animals into caricatures or anthropomorphized characters, such as “Vaca Lola” or “Chicken Pío.” Thus, their real experience is dehumanized and we are encouraged to see them as funny beings without real emotions.
The trail shows us just an echo of the animals. Photo: We Animals Media
THE ILLUSION OF “COMPASSION”
Even for those who never stop caring about animals, the industry offers a last resort: “tailored compassion.” It shows us advertisements for cows with their own names in “happy fields” or videos of farms that claim high standards of animal welfare. The Mexican company Alpura, for example, has launched a campaign stating that it “loves” its cows and gives them names, in an attempt to soften its image. However, independent research shows us another reality: animals continue to live in conditions of exploitation and suffering.
The meat industry works to counteract our natural instincts for empathy and justice. It teaches us to see animals as inferior, as objects that exist for our benefit, but by becoming complicit in this narrative, we distance ourselves from our own humanity. In the end, the sacrifice of our values affects both us and the animals.
It is time to question these messages and tune into our true compassion. Animals deserve to be seen and respected, not erased, ridiculed or reduced to mere products. By honoring that sense of justice and love that we all had in childhood, we can build a more just world, not only for animals, but also for ourselves.
Jessica González Castro
Jessica González Castro is Director in Latin America for the international organization Generación Vegana. He studied a degree in Hospitality Business Administration at the Universidad del Valle de México. He founded the first vegan community center in Mexico, Casa Animal.
