A European Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving weekend is coming up and although we don’t live in the U.S., American films, TV series, magazines and websites have brought us the spirit of this all American holiday, so much so that it isn’t “all American” anymore.

This is probably the only time of the year when Europeans, even Italians, who have experienced a Thanksgiving dinner in the U.S., or just watched it somewhere on TV, crave American food:  pumpkin pie, gravy, cranberry sauce, even the marshmallow sweet potatoes casserole but more than anything else, the turkey. In these days, many of us are tempted to try the American recipe, this is why the campaign launched by the animal rights organization Farm Sanctuary, should not just be confined in the U.S.

According to the organization 46 million turkeys are killed every year just before Thanksgiving but what is worrying is not only the huge number of animals killed right before this holiday, but the factory farming system behind it, since it represents a threat to biodiversity and has a negativee impact on the environment. As a matter of fact intensive farming can cause soil contamination, loss of biodiversity, greenhouse gas emissions and energy and water wastage.

The Adopt-a-Turkey project is supported by a number of celebrities, such as Ellen Degeneres, who have decided to have a Turkey-less holiday. The campaign encourages you to adopt a turkey by making a small donation that will enable the organization to keep up the work they do with rescued animals at their centers and to educate and advocate for farm animals everywhere.

Save a turkey!