Meatpacking Research Paper

Industrial agriculture is currently the predominant food production system in the United States. It is distinguished by large-scale monoculture, abundant use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and meat production in CAFOs. CAFOs are ‘Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations’, otherwise known as factory farms, which aim to cram as many animals in one space to boost efficiency and profit at the expense of animal suffering and environmental hazards.

Even though higher yields are met for demand and human consumption, factory farming is cruel to animals due to the fact animals are often subject to harsh living conditions, more susceptible to diseases and injuries and are treated inhumanely during the slaughtering process. Unfortunately, with an increase in human population worldwide, the strain on farmers to meet the demand increases as well. This in turn causes more animals to be subject to this cruelty.

As found by Steven Greenhouse of the New York times, “…the nation’s meat packing industry has such bad working conditions that it violates basic human and worker rights.” Ever since the publication of

Statistics derived from the United States Department of Agriculture show that approximately 10 billion animals raised each year are killed for food in the United States. The toll taken to the environment by mass meat production and the consumption of animal products is never considered. No one to think about how many resources needed to produce enough meat to cater to excessive consumption of animal products all over the world. These animals need to eat and drink. Feeding 10 billion animals in the United States cost more than feeding the whole world. Statistics from the UN show that raising and feeding animals uses approximately 30% of the land mass (Kallen, 2006).

We all hear about how bad red meat is for both the planet’s health and our own. Planet-wise, there’s no argument: The detrimental effects of greenhouse gases from livestock production on the earth’s atmosphere can’t be overlooked. So, for the month of October, members of the PopSci staff are abstaining from all forms of red meat (#NoRedOctober) for the sake of the environment, and, by extension, for our own good. We have to live here, after all. It’s in our best interest to minimize the cow farts.

The living conditions for these poor animals in these factory farms are disgusting. According to the article “Visualise Factory Farming”, nearly 20,000 pigs are sometimes kept in a building just one football field in size, and as many as 20,000 to 30,000 chickens are stuffed inside of a building only 400 feet long. Now housing one to two million birds on one site has become relatively common. Along with that, in yet another article, it is stated “pigs and chickens, in particular, are warehoused in dim, crowded and suffocating conditions -- a cross between an 18th century slave ship and 1930’s mental institution.” This happens in places known as concentrated animal feeding operations(CAFOs), where 99 percent of the meat you find in a grocery store comes from. I find it hard to believe this kind of treatment to animals is legal.

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

Aside from animal abuse, factory farming also causes devastating effects on health. These health risks concern humans as well as animals. Approximately two-thirds of the 1,400 known pathogens to scientists are thought to have originated in animals (Sayre, Laura). The most common illnesses known to humans have actually came from the same animals we eat or have eaten in the past: tuberculosis and the common cold are thought to come to us from cattle, pertussis from pigs or sheep, leprosy from water buffalo, and influenza from ducks (Sayre, Laura). You may ask, “Well how does this have a connection with factory farming?” The connection is actually quite simple. Factory farms are breeding grounds for virulent disease, which spreads to the community through the food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe, and even the people who work at these “farms” by coming in contact with them and their families (Sayre, Laura). The unsanitary and stressful conditions in factory farms are passing new diseases onto humans faster than ever before.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention documented that “about one out of six Americans get sick (approximately 48 million people), 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die each year from foodborne diseases” (CDC.gov). According to the FDA this is a significant public health concern which can be preventable (FDA.gov). This was the main reason why on January 4th, 2011, President Obama signed the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) into law. Some specific examples and major events that might have led to signing the FSMA into a law are major outbreaks that have happened in the past few years. Some examples are the Escherichia coli O157:H7 outbreak which was linked to spinach, contamination of wheat gluten with melamine, and the outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium in Peanut Corporation of America 's peanut butter (Acheson, 2015).

The United States consumes the most meat per capita of any nation in the world. As of 2009, Americans have consumed almost 300 pounds of meat per person and the nations demand for meat has only increased as the years went by. The more meat our nation consumes, the more animals being treated and slaughtered in ways that are not imaginable. Many animals involved in farming industries are confined into environments that are inhumane

Imagine running in lush green grass, surrounded by the sounds of animals like you playing, grazing and exploring their paradise. Imagine bright red barns, and being fed and getting pampered every day. Imagine taking a bite of a juicy burger, and breathing in the clean fresh air of nature. Now imagine a small confined space with fences and millions of others like you placed in one area, with barely any space to move. Imagine contaminated water, biting into a poor quality, hormone infested burger. Lastly imagine breathing in harmful emissions. This is the behind the scenes of our meat industry. Although factory farming provides inexpensive meat, Job opportunities and lucrative, efficient produce, its negative consequences to animals, global warming

Today, the average European consumes over 80 kilograms of meat every year. If you’re familiar with the heavy burden meat production and consumption places on the environment, this is dreadful, but rational information. Meat production is known to require an immense amount of energy, resulting in it being far less efficient than eating crops, but also contributes to increased greenhouse gas emissions and consuming meat has to potential to seriously harm your body, to only mention a few of meats downsides. The obvious way to draw nearer to solving these problems would be to eat less meat or cut out meat from your diet entirely, a trendy path an increasing amount of people are taking, but alas, all too few. This article is written in hopes of convincing more people to follow this path, restoring our environment, one

Meat packing firms are the main culprit behind foodborne pathogens. For example, E. coli is a bacterium that is found in contaminated meat products and can cause lasting health consequences following the “release of a toxin that attacks the lining of the intestine.” Additionally, Eric Schlosser states, “Every day in the United States, roughly 200,000 people are sickened by a foodborne disease, 900 are hospitalized, and fourteen die” this is due to the centralized system of food processing fast food chains have developed that allows for the production of considerable quantities of ground beef. Moreover, Schlosser justifies his claim through logic, for instance he mentions that hamburgers were considered “a food for the poor” and that pork had been the most widely consumed meat, until the falling cattle prices. By 1990, beef production was accountable for the increase in employment in American agriculture. Americans ate beef often,

There are several legit reasons why animals should not be used for food production and treated the way they are and why the laws should be strengthened. On the other hand, we have been using animals for food consumption for millions of years and it is undoubtedly humans main source of food consumption. The pros and the cons expand across the board, but one view seems to go with both sides: the health risks and cleanliness of the factories need to be held at a higher standard, for everyone's sake. Without the strict laws in place, the easy accessibility poses a great risk on humans and all other forms of life.

Despite the efforts of government agencies, food suppliers and average citizens, outbreaks still occur. The most common pathogens are Salmonella, Listeria and toxoplasma. Outbreaks evoke swift response from the government, recalls of hundreds of pounds of food, consumer panic and revenue loss. 1998’s Food Modernization Act gave the FDA “new responsibilities to inspect food-processing plants and farms for prevention purposes, rather than just tracing contamination after it