Sunday, 16 August 2015

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #579 Leave Krill in the Ocean

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #579 Leave Krill in the Ocean


Well, I’m no scientist, nor am I a nutritionist, but I’m good at asking questions. During the thousands of years humans have walked this planet, when did they start eating krill? During the thousands of years of dogs walking this planet, when did they ever eat krill? Since when did krill become a necessity in the human, or canine, diet? Humans only began eating krill in the 19th century, which equates to the time of human population explosion. However, in the 1970s the harvesting of krill really got serious, probably because (and you can do more of your own research on this one) krill became a money-making venture for large corporations with the power to pay off environmental watchdogs and take what they want. They also have the money to spend on brainwashing people through their advertising to make people think they ‘need’ this product. Large ships that pump out nasty smoke into the pure air of the Antarctic are ‘harvesting’ hundreds of thousand of tonnes of krill every year. The krill is fed to fish in fish farms (same as factory farming for cattle, pigs, chickens etc, except the fish aren’t cute and furry and can’t squeal so no one seems to worry about the practices), the krill is used in dog food and the krill is sold to you as an essential ‘pill’ that will solve all your ailments and make you feel better.
People would feel much better if they ate fresh fruit and vegetables, maybe some meat and fish and kept healthy with good food and exercise. Health isn’t obtained via a krill capsule. And have you ever heard of packs of dogs thrashing into the ocean to catch krill for their dinner? I thought not. Why do they need to eat krill now? Is krill really going to be the solution to the world’s food problems or will we be cutting out nose of to spite our face?
As they are near the very bottom of the food chain, krill are a vital part of the whole ecosystem of this planet. If we harvest them to meet our short term needs and end up over harvesting (as we have done already with so many other species) then every species on the planet is put at risk. Leave krill in the ocean where it belongs and let’s find better ways to provide food for ourselves (and out pets).

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