Factory Farming Essay

We do not take in consideration on where our meat comes from and how they treat the animals. People do not know how the process is from slaughtering a cow to the meat that you buy in your neighborhood market. In the book Foodopoly, Wenonah Hauter argues that there is a misrepresentation on what truly happens in the meatpacking industry, hog industry, the impact on small farmers, and how the working conditions are for the meat packing industry workers.

Factory farms having locked doors only reinforces what some of us already suspect. That they are engaging in activities appalling to the public. Their secrecy is seemingly sustaining their business. Consumers’ ignorance of the meat production business only encourages inhumane animal husbandry. Foer says, “the power brokers of factory farming know that their business model depends on consumers not being able to see (or hear about) what they do.” (pg. 87) This is why we need to educate ourselves on this matter extensively and start actively demanding where our meat is coming from. Advocating for animal welfare is one way we can begin the process of changing or ultimately ending factory farming.

A poll conducted by the ASPCA revealed that 94% of Americans believe that production animals, specifically those raised for food, deserve to live a comfortable life free of cruelty and neglect. Despite this belief, many factory farm animals are abused and neglected in such ways that, if witnessed by consumers, would not be accepted. Over 99% of the United State’s farm animals live on factory farms that use them for means of profit, many of them violating the Animal Welfare Act and other laws put in place to protect the humane treatment of animals (ASPCA). This abuse is not limited to any specific type of farm animal. Although different animals are used for different purposes, they all share a common suffering and a need for humane care.

Our nation’s industrial farming has become more than just feeding people; it has become a way for the food industry to make more money as human population continues to grow. Jonathan Safran Foer in his book Eating Animals, illustrates the effects factory farming has had on animals meant for human consumption. Furthermore, Foer asks many questions to the reader on what will it take for us to change our ways before we say enough is enough. The questions individuals need to be asking themselves are: how do we deal with the problem of factory farming, and what can people do to help solve these issues? Eric Schlosser in Fast Food Nation, also illustrates the animal abuse that goes unseen within the food industry as well as Bernard Rollin and Robert Desch in their article “Farm Factories”, both demonstrate what is wrong today with factory farming. Foer gives such examples of employees who work in slaughterhouses giving accounts of what goes on in the kill floors, and stories of employees who have witnessed thousands and thousands of cows going through the slaughter process alive (Animals 231). Namit Arora in the article “On Eating Animals”, as well as Michael Pollan in his book The Omnivore’s Dilemma, both address some of the issues that animals face once they hit the kill floor. The food industry has transformed not only how people eat, but also the negative effects our climate endures as a result of factory farming as illustrated by Anna Lappe in “The Climate Crisis at the End

There is a large problem of animal cruelty linked to the food industry in the United States. Countless slaughterhouses, chicken farms, and other meat producers have been found guilty of harming animals and killing them inhumanely. This is something that clearly needs to change.

Animal rights are practically non-existent in many different ways today. Factory farming is probably the worst thing they can do to the poor helpless animals. Factory farming effects chickens, cows, pigs, and many other animals that are used for food, milk and eggs. One of the biggest organizations against factory farming is called Compassion Over Killing (COK). They go to great lengths to protest and inform people about animal cruelty.

Close your eyes and step into the world of an individual. You are born into a world where nights and days are never constant (attention getter). You are fed three to five times a day, but no one is there to nurture you. Not even the numerous others crammed into your living space. You grow frantic, scared, and sickly. Now open your eyes, to reality. What I have just described is one of America’s worst ghettos. You know this individual who is trapped in this environment. He is your breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is the meat you eat . Today’s farms not only abuse their animals they also produce harmful diseases and environmental hazards that affect each and every one of us, regardless of whether you consume animal products or not. The U.S. government should ban factory farms and require the meat industry to raise animals in their natural environments (preview of points and statement of purpose).

Poultry is by far the number one meat consumed in America; it is versatile, relatively inexpensive compared to other meats, and most importantly it can be found in every grocery store through out the United States. All of those factors are made possible because of factory farming. Factory farming is the reason why consumers are able to purchase low-priced poultry in their local supermarket and also the reason why chickens and other animals are being seen as profit rather than living, breathing beings. So what is exactly is factory farming? According to Ben Macintyre, a writer and columnist of The Times, a British newspaper and a former chicken farm worker, he summed up the goal of any factory farm “... to produce the maximum quantity of

Every year, over 58 billion farm animals are killed by humans for food production, and this astounding number does not even include sea creatures. This is known as factory farming – the system of inhumane raising of livestock for the purpose of supplying food for human consumption in the cheapest way possible. It is argued that factory farming should be illegal and banned worldwide not only because of its cruelty towards animals but also because the low quality meat can produce harmful diseases and major health concerns to consumers.

Does the economic benefits of factory farming outweigh the disadvantages? Our lives are so closely linked to these farm animals, what makes them so different from our cats and dogs? We care much of our pets, but when it comes to the term ”factory farm”, little do we know about the production process of factory farm and the truth behind the scene. There are some ways that the producer can make sacrifice and still achieve increased profit. The economic benefit of factory farm does not necessary outweigh the disadvantages. It’s time we should boycott factory farm, not just for the welfare of animals, but also for our own sake.

Some people know factory farming as a CAFO or AFO, but to make it simple factory farming is industrial animal production facilities. CAFO’s are increasingly how the agribusiness industry is meeting our country’s demand for beef, poultry, and pork. A typical factory farm consists of many large metal buildings where the animals are houses. Some people might believe that farm animals live in a pleasure full environment. Others might not. For instance, maybe some believe that “cows are left to graze on green fields while pigs live on quaint family farms” (Williams 374). Better yet, this beautiful image is far from reality. Animals used for factory farming are not living in that so called pleasure full environment. For one, the business of raising animals for food consumption is becoming more and more competitive as the days goes by. As Nancy Williams states, “Billions of animals are born, confined, biologically manipulated, transported, and ultimately slaughtered each year” (Williams 375). Unfortunalty, these situations can lead to animal cruelty and be prone to unsanitary

production industry, particularly in the treatment of animals. It shows how a lot of the

Department of Agriculture, cattle farms make up 31% of all livestock operations, making it the most abundant and largest single segment of American agriculture (cattle industry). The U.S.D.A also states that, “there are more than 1 million beef producers in the United States who are responsible for more than 94 million heads of beef cattle” a year (cattle industry). This rate increases as factory farming capitalizes the market. The majority of factory farms place an unhealthy amount of concentration into maximizing their profits. Their method to maximize profits is by becoming more “efficient”. To become more efficient they must increase the number of cattle, their weight, and line speed. They do this with little thought, care or fidelity of humanity. Factory farms and slaughterhouses also do what they can to domineer government regulations and prevent plant inspections. As we have learned in Fast Food Nation some plants will falsify records, belittle injuries and refuse or make worker compensation insurance difficult to receive. Actions from factory farms have shown they are morally and ethically wrong but, somehow considered lawful. These farms with intent have failed to uphold their fidelity, honesty and harm to not only the government but also their

This has been proven time and time again from undercover videos released by animal activist groups showing heart wrenching abuse. One example of this is an undercover video released by the HSUS, which shows severe animal abuse at the Hallmark Meat Packing factory. According to Tomaselli, “As a result of this investigation, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service officials admitted they often took shortcuts when inspecting cattle before slaughter. This led to one of the largest beef recalls in U.S. history” (Tomaselli). In the video workers were seen applying painful electric shocks to the cows and jabbing them in the eye. The meat from these animals was not fit for consumption leading to the beef recall. The HSUS says, “the facility is the second-largest supplier of beef to USDA’s Commodity Procurement Branch” (Rampant Animal Cruelty...). This company, Hallmark, supplied the national lunch program, as well as other federal aid programs. The defective beef from these abused cattle went on the feed many needy people and could have been potentially harmful to them. The Food Safety and Inspection Service needs to have stricter rules and stop taking

“For most humans, especially for those in modern urban and suburban communities, the most direct form or contact with non-human animals is at meal time: we eat them. This simple fact is the key to what each one of us can do about changing these attitudes. The use and abuse of animals raised for food far exceeds, in sheer numbers of animals affected, any other kind of mistreatment” (Coats). The most effective method to stop this cruelty is to learn about where the meat comes from, by supporting the organic and family farms which will ultimately lead to the reducing the amount of animals that have to suffer (PETA). More than 95 percent of animal abuse in America occurs in the meat packing industry (Harper & Low). Animals suffer an unimaginable amount, they are raised to be killed, then bought and then consumed. In order to help fight back against the abuse, there needs to be a cut back on the amount of meat or poultry that is consumed. Seriously consider the option of becoming a vegetarian; by not eating meat, you completely stop supporting animal