Dare to say it? Would you eat Giraffe?

Surprise, surprise, The Daily Mail has been complaining again. This time about the prospect of us eating *gasp* a wild animal. Well, forgive us Mail if we even so much as think about eating something that hasn’t lived its entire life on a battery farm.

At the centre of their attacks is Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, the chef famed for eating anything from bats and squirrels to crocodiles and alligators (which are actually very nice). However, this time they feel he is pushing his controversial boundaries by daring to suggest that maybe, just maybe, he might eat a giraffe.

In Whittingstall’s claims he states “I would not rule out, say, giraffe. They do eat it in certain parts of Africa, if it's killed responsibly”. A fair statement some would say. He is hardly encouraging the slaughter of endangered creatures and is even suggesting that he would not eat the animal if he knew of inhumane hunting methods.

In response, animal rights activist Justin Kerswell, who is campaign manager at Viva! Said that Whittingstall’s actions were “totally irresponsible” and that he had “never heard of anyone eating a giraffe in Africa”. Well, this man is either a misinformed Daily Mail reader of should know his field better – a quick google search will confirm that giraffe is in fact hunted for food and is expanding in numbers in certain parts of Africa.

Now, in no way would I condone hunting endangered or protected animals, but if a giraffe is eaten in certain parts of Africa and killed humanely, then why should a chef – under the same circumstances and whose job it is to teach the public about new ways of eating, be treated like a criminal.

Perhaps The Daily Mail would prefer if we stuck to chain restaurants instead of expanding our palettes. Heaven forbid, it might just encourage us to have a heightened opinion – which we all know is dangerous.

Sod it, lets just be America and have their health problems too.