The meat in France is stronger and tougher likely because the cows have a
normal life. The reason that the average meat in the US is lighter in taste
is that the cows are fed corn instead of grass, and is more tender is that
their movement is restricted in their mass industrialization. Although, you
might not like the taste as much, it is much safer and saner way to eat
meat. The unnatural way that the us produces meat requires antibiotics,
which you will eventually consume. (hormones are also involved, but that is
another issue).

Please read the following to get a complete sense of the way that the
average meat is processed in the US. It not pretty, and you might just stay
in France to eat well or not eat it at all in the US.

This Steer's Life by Michael Pollan http://www.nehbc.org/pollan1.html
Michael Pollan (Audio)
http://freshair.npr.org/day_fa.jhtml?displayValue=day&todayDate=04/03/2002(script)
http://www2.math.uic.edu/~takata/som...tibiotics.html

Eric Schlosser (on fast food and artificial foods)
http://freshair.npr.org/topic_fa.jhtml

Claudia

"Luna***Star" > wrote in message
...
>> in France meat tastes completely
>> different than it does in the US. It's stronger flavored. It's also a
>> lot tougher.
>
> I know what you mean! I'm Canadian and like you, I now live in France. I
> also don't like french beef very much. I've tried different hypermarché
> and none of them sell good beef. It's always tough as a shoe sole and
> the taste isn't grand either. If you want to eat good beef, you have to
> buy it from a decent butcher shop. It's 3 times more expensive but it
> will be similar to what you are used to.
>
> a+