The lovable and mild-mannered sheep, first domesticated approximately 10,000 years ago in Central Asia, has a long and rich relationship with mankind. Indeed, sheep have been credited with making the spread of civilization possible. Wool, for example, was the first commodity of value to merit international trade. The Italian explorer, Christopher Columbus, stocked his ship with sheep for use as a “walking food supply” during his second voyage to the New World. Even the mythologies…
Due to its adaptable diet and independent nature, the pig is one of the oldest and most popular forms of livestock. Indeed, pigs were domesticated as far back as 5000 BC in Asia (much earlier than cattle and other ruminants), and have traveled across the world with humans. The famous Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, for example, brought eight pigs with him on his voyage to Cuba in 1493. 46 years later, Hernando de Soto landed…
Mention the words “organ meat” (or, better still, “offal”) to the average person and they’re likely to curl their faces in disgust. Eating the organs of animals is gross, we keep getting told, and only a caveman would do it. Well, maybe we need to eat like cavemen again. After all, cavemen were seldom afflicted with type 2 diabetes, hypertension and other modern diseases that stem from unnatural diets. The simple fact is that organ…
It is impossible to understate the importance of water. This odorless, colorless liquid, which covers two-thirds of the Earth’s surface and comprises 75% of the human body, is absolutely necessary for all life. Indeed, out of all the nutrients we require in our diet, water is – by far – the one we need the most in terms of volume. Despite its importance, however, several of the questions surrounding water – how much of it…
The aromatic and flavorful onion has a long and productive history with mankind. The ancient Indians, Sumerians and Chinese, for instance, valued onions for their ease of growth and hardy constitutions, which made them less perishable (and more transportable) than other vegetables grown at the time. The ancient Egyptians, on the other hand, worshiped onions as symbols of eternity due to their circle-within-a-circle structure. And then there were the ancient Romans, who loved onions for…
