The town of Brookline, Mass., on Nov. 16 adopted a resolution against the sale and consumption of crated veal, a result of Tufts sophomore Rachel Baras' efforts to raise awareness of animal cruelty issues surrounding its production.
Formally titled Article 21, the resolution encourages restaurants, food vendors and consumers in Brookline to cease their sale and purchase of crated veal. Baras, herself a Brookline resident, presented her petition to Brookline's Town Meeting — the town's legislature — and the town subsequently voted to adopt the proposed resolution nearly unanimously, voting 163-4, according to Baras.
Crated veal is meat taken from a calf that has been restricted to living inside an isolated crate from birth until slaughter, she said.
Baras said that the resolution, which she authored, is not binding and does not outlaw the sale of crated veal.
"I made it non-binding for a specific reason," Baras said. "I did not want this to be a burden on food purveyors."
She felt that taking her cause through the Town Meeting process and implementing an official resolution was the most persuasive means of getting businesses to alter their buying habits.
The process of petitioning the town and then having the town review the petition is multi-faceted and takes several months, according to Brookline Selectman Richard Benka.
Baras said that she initiated her project, called the Brookline Veal Calf Project, in August.
Baras first submitted a citizen's petition, which requires at least 10 signatures from registered town voters who support the petition, Benka explained. From there, Baras had to present her petition to the Board of Selectman, then to a sub-committee of the Advisory Board, then to the full Advisory Board and finally at Town Meeting.
"There are now 163 people agreeing with me," Baras said. "I can go to businesses and say, there are these people who agree with me in the town. Therefore, it might be helpful to reconsider your sources of veal."
Baras said the focus on veal over other meats made the resolution more appealing.
"People don't really eat veal, so it's easier to cut from the diet," she said.
Nancy Heller, a member of Brookline's Advisory Committee, told the Daily that consumers still have options, including veal produced using more humane methods.
"People can still have veal," Heller said, adding that approximately 500 veal vendors in the United States alone ensure that their veal comes from humanely treated calves.
As part of the resolution, restaurants and food purveyors will be informed about alternative veal options, according to Benka.
"When the town sends out license renewals to restaurants and to food vendors, it will include information about this resolution and contacts for individuals or companies that produce veal in a more humane fashion," he said.
Heller saw Article 21 as a way to encourage Brookline residents to modify their food-buying habits, promoting interest in humanely produced veal, similar to selecting free-range chickens or cage-free eggs.
Baras said that The Humane Society of the United States has also worked with several other Massachusetts towns to implement bans against crated veal. Five states have already passed legislation concerning animal confinement practices in the meat industry, with more bills pending in both New York and Massachusetts.
The Massachusetts bill, filed in 2009, includes prohibition on the sale of crated veal, according to Heller, who said that the European Union has already adopted bans on crated veal.
"Our hats are off to Rachel to doing something like this and attempting to educate the town about something she is very passionate about," Heller said.
Baras called Article 21 a starting point for larger action on not only crated veal, but also other important animal rights issues. She limited her petition to crated veal because she saw the issue as one of the most excessively cruel violations of animal rights.
The crating procedure separates veal calves from their mother almost immediately after birth so that the mother can continue to lactate and produce milk, Baras said. After being taken, calves are usually put in very tiny crates in which they can barely move. Baras said that many of them become very sick, usually from anemia and malnourishment.
In the past, consumers have wanted crated veal because the meat is particularly tender, a result of calves' inability to move their muscles over a period of months, Heller explained. She mentioned that crated calves are intentionally deprived of iron, such as from their mother's milk, in order to produce meat that is as pale as possible.
The Advisory Committee and Board of Selectmen were also concerned about the effects of the consumption of crated veal on human health. Brookline Health Director Alan Balsam told Advisory Committee members prior to the Town Meeting that crated veal calves are given many antibiotics to treat their illnesses, which can be passed on to consumers of the meat, according to Benka and Heller.
