By all accounts, mad-cow disease is something you want to avoid. It is a horrible disease linked to eating infected beef that causes a slow wasting of the brain. There are so many other ways that a meat-heavy diet is more likely to hurt you.
Many people already know that.
Beef consumption is down considerably in this country from its peak in the 1970s, although it has been creeping back up in recent years. Chicken, turkey and fish consumption all are substantially up. Soy-based foods are catching on. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good veggie burger just as much as the next guy. But I often wonder what would happen if there was a serious interruption in America's meat supply similar to what is going on now in Great Britain and Europe.