The Old-School Meat You Rarely See On Dinner Tables Today - Tasting Table

"Americans are famously avid meat-eaters, but some meats are unofficially off-limits on U.S. dinner tables. For some controversial meats, like foie gras and ortolan, the contentious ethical status is linked to preparations that don't minimize cruelty. In other cases, however, "cuteness factor" indicates where the boundary line is drawn. Even as epicurean opinions shift and expand to welcome tinned fish, nose-to-tail butchering, and offal ( monkfish liver, anyone?) into the fashionable contemporary dining scene, rabbit meat is still not a common part of U.S. diets."

"Indeed, rabbits reach sexual maturity at three to seven months of age and produce multiple litters (four to 12 baby rabbits each) per year. Commenters echo, "It's a shame, it's one of the most sustainable meat sources along with guinea pigs," a popular protein in South American countries like Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia. Another comment from an apparent rabbit farmer writes, "It's hard to not get attached because the babies are so cute, but we went for hybridization vigor and mixed breeds so it was well worth the effort in meat and hides," noting that rabbits are substantially easier to process than other small meat animals like chickens ("no feathers to pluck and you can desleeve the whole pelt, skin and all")."

Rabbits are capable of rapid reproduction and low-cost maintenance, reaching sexual maturity within three to seven months and producing multiple litters per year. The animals are cited as sustainable meat sources and are easier to process than some small livestock, with simpler skinning and fewer feathers. Cultural resistance persists in the U.S., influenced by a 'cuteness' threshold and ethical concerns that limit willingness to eat rabbit. Economically, individual rabbits yield far less meat than cows or pigs and lack dual-purpose functions like egg-laying or waste consumption. Those biological, cultural, and economic factors suppress mainstream rabbit meat production and consumption.

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