US Factory Farming

Companies and Factory Farms

Companies have developed new mass production techniques in response to the rising demand for animal goods. One of them is the idea of factory farms, where numerous animals are grown for human consumption in cramped quarters as the owners try to keep costs down. As there are more produce than needed to satisfy demand, this farming technique also lowers food prices. However, despite providing humans with an abundance of cheap food, this is a harmful agricultural practice that has a negative impact on both the ecosystem and public health. Factory farming is associated with serious costs like pollution of the environment, exploitation of farm laborers, and inhumane treatment of animals, and it is time the practice was eliminated in the US.

Growing Trend in New Methods of Mass Production

There has been a growing trend over the last two decades of small and medium scale livestock farmers giving way to new methods of mass production where farm animals are tightly packed in confined facilities. Other farmers have also adopted these farming practices to satisfy an increasing demand from large meatpackers, pork processing, dairy processing, and poultry companies. These are large agribusinesses that have great power as they are practically monopolies that control what consumers eat, market prices of livestock products, and what farmers receive for their produce. These organizations hold unchecked power that has influenced the growth of misguided agricultural policies and pressure for livestock farmers to adopt more intensive practices that can lead to an increase in output. This has also seen changes in not only the methods of production but also the number of livestock farmers in the US.

Rise of Factory Farms

The number of factory farms as well as the animals being reared keeps on rising every year. Contrary to previous decades when small and medium size livestock farmers were dispersed across the country, livestock farming today is dominated by large-scale factory farms that are concentrated in specific regions. A report analyzing data from the Department of Agriculture shows that between 2002 and 2012, there was an average 20 percent increase in the total number of livestock across the major factory farms. Within the same period, the population of dairy cattle in factory farms increased two-fold, the number of beef cows rose 5%, pig population grew by a third, chicken broilers increase by 80%, and egg laying chicken increased by 25% (Foodandwaterwatch.org, 2015). At the same time, as the population of the livestock in the farms increases so does the amount of waste produced from these facilities. According to the report, livestock in factory farms produced almost 370 million tons of waste which is about 13 times the waste from humans in the whole of the country in a year (Foodandwaterwatch.org, 2015).

Negative Impacts of Factory Farming

There is a need to control the factory farming industry whose effects continue to be felt as it grows each year. Harari (2015, para. 1), described this practice as “one of the worst crimes in history.” Factory farming affects the public, the environment, and the animals that are subjected to inhumane treatment. This irresponsible method of agricultural production has costs to the public in the form of health problems and ecological damage. Factory farming has been linked with an increase in the emission of greenhouse gases. Factory farms use fossil fuels to grow feed for the livestock and other processes aimed at raising large populations of land animals for human consumption. Research shows that this practice leads to the emission of 90 million tons of carbon dioxide in the world each year and also accounts for 37% of the methane emissions (Koneswaran & Nierenberg, 2008). These are the two main greenhouse gases that are associated with severe greenhouse effects. As mentioned factory farms also produce millions of tons of manure which unlike sewage from humans does not undergo wastewater treatment. These wastes, therefore, become highly concentrated in areas around the industrial farm and pollute the environment.

Economical and Health Impact

Industrial farming of livestock has greatly impacted rural economies and driven many small-scale producers out of business as the large-scale producers dominate the market. Factory farms have rapidly replaced independent producers in the US due to their efficiency and affordable prices. Industrial farm has lower operating costs due to large-scale production, making their products cheaper as compared to traditional farmers who are easily outcompeted and pushed out of business. The National Agricultural Statistics Service estimates that 330 small-scale producers are run out of business every week (Nass.usda.gov, 2015). Instead of venturing into other business, some of these farmers have to work for the competitors who edged them out of the market. Workers in these farms are exposed to numerous health risks due to a dirty working environment and lack of proper equipment.

Health Risks and Animal Treatment

Factory farming also endangers the health of the wider population in the country who consume the livestock products from these farms. Factory farming is facilitated by the use of antibiotics. The continued use of antibiotics creates resistant bacteria which eventually end up on our plates. Furthermore, these farms practice selective breeding of animals which leads to stressed and less robust animals that are more susceptible to disease. Genetics and intensive systems used in these farms develop hens that can produce more than 250 eggs in a year as compared to their ancestors that lay only 20 annually increase disease risk and mortality (Saxena, 2011). Antimicrobials found in industrial farmed livestock can severely damage intestinal gut bacteria which are vital in the human immune response (Hao et al., 2014).

Animal Cruelty and Call for Change

Finally, factory farming encourages cruel treatment of animals. Large populations of animals are kept in small spaces that are dark and dirty. Rather than allow the animals to mate naturally, they are injected with different types of chemicals that are meant to increase their body mass within a short period. These animals are not allowed to have their natural diet. These animals live short lives full of misery before they are killed to feed humans. Research has shown that animals like cows develop friendships and also get lonely. In factory farms, animals are only seen as commercial goods rather than living beings.

Conclusion

Considering all these negative effects, it is time this issue is looked at with sufficient attention and urgency. There are other ways of achieving food security which are sustainable, cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and humane. Factory farming causes animals to live and die in a production line all for the benefit of a few corporations that make profits while the wider society suffers from immense disease coupled with economic and health burden. Furthermore, millions of people are at an increased risk of disease while the environment continues to be degraded. Indeed, there is a need for a shift towards more healthy, resource-efficient, and environmental methods of food production.

References

Foodandwaterwatch.org. (2015). Factory Farm Nation: 2015 Edition. Food & Water Watch. Retrieved 25 September 2017, from https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/insight/factory-farm-nation-2015-edition

Hao, H., Cheng, G., Iqbal, Z., Ai, X., Hussain, H., & Huang, L. et al. (2014). Benefits and risks of antimicrobial use in food-producing animals. Frontiers In Microbiology, 5. http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2014.00288

Harari, Y. (2015). Industrial farming is one of the worst crimes in history. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/sep/25/industrial-farming-one-worst-crimes-history-ethical-question

Koneswaran, G., & Nierenberg, D. (2008). Global Farm Animal Production and Global Warming: Impacting and Mitigating Climate Change. Environmental Health Perspectives, 116(5), 578-582. http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.11034

Nass.usda.gov. (2015). USDA - National Agricultural Statistics Service - Data and Statistics. Nass.usda.gov. Retrieved 25 September 2017, from https://www.nass.usda.gov/Data_and_Statistics/

Saxena, A. (2011). The vegetarian imperative. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.