What we collect, what we don't, and why.

The short version

Freshie Meat does not:

• Display third-party advertising of any kind
• Collect or sell personal data
• Operate an email mailing list (so we don't collect email addresses)
• Track readers across other websites (no Facebook Pixel, Google Ads tracking, retargeting cookies, etc.)
• Use behavioral profiling or interest-based targeting

Freshie Meat does:

• Use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to count page views and understand which articles are read
• Set anonymous functional cookies for analytics (no cross-site tracking)
• Log standard server access information (IP address, user agent) for security and analytics
• Include affiliate links that, when clicked, may set cookies on the merchant's domain (not ours) per their own privacy policies

Analytics — Google Analytics 4

We use GA4 to understand which pages get read, which guides are popular, and where readers drop off. This is the only analytics or tracking we operate.

GA4 sets cookies (typically _ga and _ga_*) that contain anonymous identifiers. These cookies do not contain your name, email, or any directly identifying information. They let GA4 distinguish one visit from another in aggregate.

If you'd prefer not to be counted by GA4: install a browser extension like Google's official GA opt-out or any standard ad/tracker blocker (uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger). The site works fine without analytics; we just lose visibility into reader behavior.

Cookies set by this site

Functional cookies set directly by freshiemeat.com:

• GA4 analytics cookies (_ga, _ga_*) — anonymous identifiers for analytics; expire after 13 months
• Session storage for filter/sort preferences on directory pages (e.g., remember which brand filters you'd selected) — cleared when you close the tab

We do not set tracking cookies, advertising cookies, behavioral profiling cookies, or any cookies that survive beyond the GA4 13-month limit.

Cookies set by affiliate links

When you click an affiliate link on this site, the merchant (e.g., Amazon, D'Artagnan, iGourmet) typically sets a cookie on their domain that lasts 24 hours to 30 days — this is how they track that you came from our site and how we earn commission if you buy. These cookies are set by the merchant under their own privacy policy, not by us.

If you don't want to be tracked by an affiliate cookie, don't click the affiliate link — just navigate to the merchant directly. The site still works.

Server logs

Like nearly every website, our hosting provider (Cloudflare Pages) logs basic information about each request: IP address, browser user-agent string, page URL, timestamp, referrer URL. These logs are used for security (rate-limiting, abuse detection) and aggregate analytics. They are not connected to any personal identity and are automatically discarded according to Cloudflare's standard retention policy.

Your rights

If you're in the EU, UK, California, or another jurisdiction with data-subject rights laws (GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA, etc.), you have the right to know what data we collect, request deletion of any personal data we hold about you, and request correction of inaccurate data.

In practice, the only data we hold about you is what GA4 collects (anonymous identifiers, page-view counts) and what Cloudflare's server logs capture (IP address + request metadata). We can't connect these to your identity because we don't collect identifying information in the first place.

If you want your GA4 data deleted, you can request that from Google directly via their data deletion tool or by emailing us at hello@freshiemeat.com with details that would let us locate your data.

Changes to this policy

If we materially change what we collect, we'll update this page and note the change. We won't add tracking, profiling, ad networks, or email harvesting without making it obvious. Minor wording clarifications (like this one) won't get separate announcements.

Contact

Privacy questions: hello@freshiemeat.com.