Every Thanksgiving, Americans participate in a deeply ingrained ritual centered around a food most don’t particularly enjoy: turkey. Despite widespread awareness that commercially raised turkeys are often dry, bland, and unfulfilling, over 40 million are consumed each year, a tradition that may have little to do with the historical narrative of the first Thanksgiving – which likely didn’t even feature turkey. This disconnect highlights a deeper truth about why people eat meat: it’s rarely about taste alone.
The Disconnect Between Tradition and Preference
The persistence of turkey on Thanksgiving tables isn’t driven by culinary delight, but by social conformity and deeply ingrained ritual. We maintain the tradition not because we crave the flavorless bird, but because breaking with it would feel like a social transgression, a visible rejection of a cherished national holiday. This instinct to conform is particularly strong around food, which acts as a powerful social glue. Even individuals who otherwise limit meat consumption often revert to tradition when hosted by others, avoiding awkward conversations about factory farming and animal welfare.
However, this logic can be flipped: precisely because of the strong social context around food, Thanksgiving is an ideal time to challenge and change deeply ingrained habits. As one vegan activist put it, “It’s in these settings that we actually have an opportunity to influence broader change.”
The Brutal Reality of Turkey Production
The disconnect is further compounded by the horrific conditions in which most turkeys are raised. The modern Broad Breasted White turkey has been genetically engineered for maximum breast meat yield, resulting in birds so top-heavy they struggle to walk. Breeding is often artificial, with workers forced to manually extract semen from males using vacuum pumps while pinning hens chest-down for artificial insemination. This process is described as grueling, dirty, and among the worst-paid labor imaginable.
The lives of factory-farmed turkeys are defined by violence, including beak trimming, toe mutilations, and mass culling during outbreaks like the ongoing bird flu epidemic, in which tens of millions of birds are exterminated using brutal methods. Despite this suffering, over 8 million turkeys are thrown in the trash every Thanksgiving.
Reclaiming the Holiday
The author suggests that if social context shapes our tastes, then Thanksgiving is the perfect time to reshape food customs for the better. Plant-based feasts are not just an alternative but a more authentic expression of gratitude for the Earth’s abundance, rather than celebrating a system built on cruelty and waste.
Beyond Turkey: A Feast of Alternatives
Creative alternatives are readily available, including mushroom Wellingtons, lentil-stuffed squash, cashew lentil bakes, and decadent plant-based desserts. Even vegan turkey roasts have improved significantly in recent years. The real challenge isn’t the food itself, but confronting the “unpleasant truths and ethical disagreements” that surface when traditions are questioned.
Culture is not static; it evolves through ongoing conversations about shared values. By embracing change, we can reclaim Thanksgiving as a celebration of compassion and sustainability, rather than perpetuating a cycle of cruelty and waste. The author concludes that it is time to start adapting traditions that no longer align with modern ethics.
