[ RadSafe ] Austrian Versus Texas Wild Boar Meat

Tue Jun 7 11:46:13 CDT 2011

There was an article a while ago that, in my opinion, held some clues as to why contaminated boars meat is still being found in Germany.

In order to cut costs, the government turned over monitoring the carcasses hunters, especially commercial hunters, brought out of the woods to volunteer groups.  The volunteers were mostly commercial hunters who received a little training, and then worked unsupervised at monitoring stations.  Contaminated carcasses were confiscated and destroyed, and the hunter compensated for their loss.  

The interesting part comes in when the market price for the meat drops below the compensation level.  It seems that more pigs become contaminated, and get purchased by the government.  Also, because most of the volunteers are themselves hunters, they often know the people whose kills they are monitoring, and they themselves might well be bringing a kill to a monitoring station in the near future, manned by the very people they are currently monitoring.  

The article didn't come right out and say that the commercial hunters are selling to the highest bidder, even when the highest bidder is the government and the meat isn't actually contaminated, but it was implied.  And it is clearly predicted by market theory.  

-----Original Message-----
From: radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu [mailto:radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu] On Behalf Of neilkeeney at aol.com
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 7:54 PM
To: jdaitken at sugar-land.oilfield.slb.com; radsafe at health.phys.iit.edu; franz.schoenhofer at chello.at; maurysis at peoplepc.com
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Austrian Versus Texas Wild Boar Meat

Jeez. 

A little odd that the Austrian pigs would have such a burden, at least a pre-Chernobyl burden, eh?

Maybe this would be worth writing a grant proposal from a pork-barrel spending fund to studythis apparent indicator species here in the US... There are probably wild pigs around most of the nuclear plants across the Southern US...  

It could be the analogue of the tooth-fairy project. Perhaps the pig-fairy project.  Maybe the pork-fairy project, or is that taking an oxymoron just too far?  It's late...

Regards,

Neil Keeney

-----Original Message-----
From: Doug Aitken <jdaitken at sugar-land.oilfield.slb.com>
To: 'The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) Mailing List' <radsafe at health.phys.iit.edu>; 'Gilbert Keeney' <neilkeeney at aol.com>; 'Franz Schönhofer' <franz.schoenhofer at chello.at>
Sent: Mon, Jun 6, 2011 6:58 am
Subject: RE: [ RadSafe ] Austrian Versus Texas Wild Boar Meat

Having seen many in the backwoods of Texas, and some big'uns in the jungles
f Borneo, the "wild boar" in Texas are in general feral pigs - domestic
igs that have escaped and gone wild.
hey lack the vicious curved fangs of the real boar. But you still don't
ant to mess with them, especially if it is a mother with piglets!
They are indeed a real nuisance and are hunted regularly, but those
ritters breed like crazy and you just can't keep 'em down. And they grow
ig!
I can’t say that the flesh is much different from regular pig - a bit more
gamey". But as I never tasted real "boar" I am sure there is a bit of a
ifference.
oug
-----Original Message-----
rom: radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu
mailto:radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu] On Behalf Of Dan W McCarn
ent: Sunday, June 05, 2011 5:58 PM
o: 'The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) MailingList';
Gilbert Keeney'; 'Franz Schönhofer'
ubject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Austrian Versus Texas Wild Boar Meat
Dear Maury:
I am expert on part of this subject!
For years in Austria, I'd ride the fence on my horse 4 seasons a year to
heck for places where wild boars had dug through or under the fences in the
arnabrunner Wald in Lower Austria.  For this task, I was awarded a free
ild boar each year (with me at the trigger of my accurized Winchester Model
894 .30-30) and they all tasted "real good".  I did this memorable task
rom 1981 through 1988, so I was quite conscious of the potential effects of
he Chernobyl accident. 
HOWEVER, following the accident, our hunting club submitted a wild boar shot
and refrigerated) the autumn before Chernobyl for testing.  The report was
hat it was badly radioactively contaminated, so we tended not to believe
nything we were told after that.  I also shot quite a few pheasant, duck &
oe deer in Austria, and they all tasted "real good", too!
Heck, I've even been snipe hunting in Austria, too!  (The real kind!)
I also have significant experience with the succulent rattlesnakes of
olorado during years of field exploration for uranium, and they all tasted
real good", too!  I had them roasted, broiled, barbequed, turned into Chile
nd even curried & served on a bed of rice with mandarin oranges. I never
hecked to see if they were particularly radioactive or not, but their
attle sounded quite similar to my scintillation counter, so they might have
een.
Those critters all tasted "real good"!
But, I've never been wild boar hunting in Texas...
The wild boar around Chernobyl tend to dig up the countryside as well!  I
njoyed the Pripyat Swamp in 1996 and 1996.
Dan ii
--
an W McCarn, Geologist
08 Sherwood Blvd
os Alamos, NM 87544-3425
1-505-672-2014 (Home – New Mexico)
1-505-670-8123 (Mobile - New Mexico)
otGreenChile at gmail.com (Private email) HotGreenChile at gmail dot com

----Original Message-----
rom: radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu
mailto:radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu] On Behalf Of Maury
ent: Sunday, June 05, 2011 15:54
o: Gilbert Keeney; Franz Schönhofer
c: The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) Mailing List
ubject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Austrian Versus Texas Wild Boar Meat
Thanks, Neil, I'd forgotten that they are here -- I'll try to find a source.
 like cabrito, but never thought to seek a source for boar. Thanks.
And it surely would a great pleasure to dine at Franz's table but yes, the
ir fare is a deterrent ...
aury&Dog
=======================
n 6/5/2011 3:29 PM, neilkeeney at aol.com wrote:
 Maury,

 As you know, there are literally tons of wild boar on the hoof over 
 there
n Texas.  You don't need to import it from Austria.  I know that in Texas,
hey ruin rice and row-crop production with their feeding habits.

 I recall that here in the U.S., during the fall and winter large 
 portions
f the the diet of wild pigs consists of acorns and acorn 'mash' that
ccumulate in washes, runnels, stream beds and the like.  Perhaps the Oaks
f Austria (sounds picturesque)) serve to concentrate Cs-137 in the acorn
roduction...

 Regards,

 Neil Keeney
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