Hungary’s government says: Eat more pork, it’s good for you!

The American Institute of Cancer Research suggests we limit the consumption of red meats and avoid processed meats.

“In order to reduce cancer risk, eat no more than 18 ounces (cooked weight) per week of red meats, like beef, pork and lamb, and avoid ham, bacon, salami, hot dogs and sausages. Red meat includes hamburgers, steak, pork chops and roast lamb. Processed meat refers to meats preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or by the addition of preservatives and include ham, bacon, pastrami and salami, as well as hot dogs and sausages.”

The dangers of red meat.

The health risk posed by red meat.

Hungarian government officials see it differently. Sándor Fazekas, Minister of Agriculture, said that the WHO (World Health Organization) report warning about the cancer risks associated with the consumption of processed and red meats is “unscientific.” Mrs. László Menczel, a lobbyist for the Hungarian meat industry, agrees with him. Her goal is to increase meat consumption in Hungary. Mrs. Menczel says that the “modern man” eats more red and processed meat. (Read more here in Hungarian.)

The Hungarian government runs state ads to promote consumption of pork, processed ham and sausage consumption.

One of the posters is the official ad in Hungarian  ..  Pork is healthy and tasty!

A government ad in Hungarian .. Pork is healthy and tasty!

Cancer researchers in the West particularly warn that read meat consumption may cause colorectal cancer. Not surprisingly, Hungary has one of the highest occurrence of colorectal cancer in the world and holds the world record in the number of deaths caused by this type of cancer!

The dangers of eating processed meat.

The dangers of eating processed meat.

Leaders of Hungary’s ruling party (Fidesz) are all involved in agriculture, many of them are pig farmers. OTP Bank billionaire Sándor Csányi, Hungary’s richest man and a close friend of PM Viktor Orbán, received a Ft 1.5 billion (USD 6.6 million) government grant to build a huge slaughterhouse for pigs in Mohács. (About Mr. Csányi’s pig business in English...)

It is suspected that Mr. Orbán himself owns a brand new pig farm via his favorite front man, Mr. Lőrinc Mészáros. (About Mr. Mészáros pig farm in English…)

It is patriotic to eat more pig meat in Hungary! Only the enemies of the country bring up the cancer concern which kills thousands of Hungarians every year. Literally!

György Lázár

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