The last two questions of your post is easy to answer. I’m not so sure they’re being honest about red meat consumption but it does make for an interesting read and it disputes many notions like shortened life expectancy. Many articles I have read about people from back then many folks lived long lives and were very accomplished, it seemed odd to me. Now we know they we healthy and not nearly as disease ridden as we were taught.
The last questions;
“ How was it lost?”
“ And could we recreate it?”
ANSWERS
(1) technological advances that provided more “free” time. Just like today.
(2) NO.
The Irish potato famine occurred when the were bumper harvests of agricultural exports to England enforced by soldiers who were in Ireland specifically to stop the Irish from getting the food. In the midst of 2 phases of the famine, with a change of Govt. to a harsher regime, the Irish were forced to change from potatoes to culturally unfamiliar Indian corn, maize. This was at the beginning of the cited, mid Victorian period.