The Meat of the Matter is a definitive collection of more than 150 sharp, bite-sized essays best described as the antidote to the activist community’s criticism of meat production, meat-eating and the industry that produces animal protein foods. Written over the last eight years by Dan Murphy, former national magazine editor and food-industry commentator, the book tackles everything from food safety to immigration to biotechnology to animal welfare to nutritional issues from both regulatory and PR perspectives.