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Food advice from the Guardian: don’t eat octopus… they have more genes than you

Last year the Guardian‘s food police deemed HP sauce to be the condiment of ‘the establishment’, barbecues to be borderline racist and roast dinners to be tinged with ‘received memories of oppression and an enslaved work force’. Now they have a new enemy in their sights — octopus.

Octopus

Yes, a writer by the name of Elle Hunt makes the argument that humans shouldn’t eat octopus because… they have more genes than you do:

‘They may be delicious and sure, there are lots of them, but next time you’re chomping down on your barbecued octopus, just remember they were the first intelligent beings on Earth and have more genes than you do.’

While Hunt is no vegetarian, she draws a line at calamari — despite the abundance of octopus — due to the high intelligence level of cephalopods:

‘No one who considers themselves interested in the inner lives of animals, the wonders and mysteries of the natural world, can eat cephalopods in good conscience.

Steerpike
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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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