Does anyone still eat guinea pigs

The desire to maintain and protect the Amazon Rainforest is heavily impacted by the need for farming space, which has resulted in crazy levels of deforestation. Widespread consumption of guinea pig would certainly be one way to offset this damage.

This depends on your perspective. Of course, there are vegetarians are screaming in horror after seeing the photos of fried up rodents on this page. Whilst I am not veggie, I can see their point. As for all the meat-eaters out there, I struggle a little with their outrage. In the West, it would be fair to say we are all very removed from what ends up on our plate.

Very few of us feel comfortable eating something cuddly and even less of us feel comfortable watching our food be killed. Surely though, as a meat-eater that is ridiculous? The fact is that if you eat meat, you should accept that it comes from an animal. Pick your side: either all animals matter or none do.

Cuy is high in protein and lower in cholesterol making it arguably a healthier choice than many other types of meat. Not only is the meat very good for you health-wise but there are also huge environmental benefits to farming guinea pig over cattle. We are currently doing such immeasurable harm to our planet in the name of feeding ourselves which we could easily reduce through lifestyle changes.

It seems to me that through eating guinea pig we may not only reduce our carbon footprint but also become a little more open-minded about our neighbours as well. I came upon this just now, for which thank you. As I am carnivore, eating only meat, animal products and animal fat, I have no qualms about what meat I eat as long as it tastes good. I am fortunate enough to live in an area in which venison is available at a small fraction of the price of more conventional cuts and I avail of it when run out of meat to eat.

My wife and I have raised and slaughtered rabbits and chickens, so we are not squeamish and will try anything at least once — ever eaten crocodile? We have and prepared right it is not bad at all.

This winter we managed to get a 35kg warthog, which we cut up and packed into the freezer. Most venison is rendered palatable by soaking it in a brine consisting of 1 tablespoon of salt to each litre of water.

Leave for 12 hours at first and then adjust according to you taste. V let the warthog for thirty six hours, as we were told it has a very gamey taste. Indeed, some argue animals like this could be the future. Guinea pigs reproduce fast, taking up very little space and efficiently processing their simple diet of grass and vegetable scraps. Raising cattle is a drain on resources, they point out.

By comparison, guinea pig, squirrel, and other rodents are "low-impact protein sources". Matt Miller, a science writer for the US-based Nature Conservancy, is writing a book about the benefits of eating "unconventional" meats. Miller focuses on a number of rodents that are "abundant and can be sustainably harvested", like squirrels, capybaras - the world's largest rodent, also eaten in Venezuela - and guinea pigs.

He concedes the "cultural aversion" to eating animals like guinea pigs is "huge" in many countries. Could those who have only ever seen guinea pigs as companions ever make that leap? Miller adds: "It's not going to replace beef. But diets can and do change over time.

I grew up hunting and eating squirrel - many rural Americans still do. There is a growing interest in many countries in food diversity, so I don't think the idea of eating guinea pigs is completely hopeless. Learn more and compare subscriptions content expands above. Full Terms and Conditions apply to all Subscriptions. Or, if you are already a subscriber Sign in.

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