FACTORY FARMING

Factory Farming

Factory Farming

Introduction

Depending on the economies of scale, the term factory farm refers to industrialized livestock rearing in which animals are confined at high densities and brought to production or slaughter as rapidly as possible. Also, called intensive, industrialized, or confinement agriculture, factory farming is dominated by agribusinesses, which have invested a great deal of capital into standardizing and mechanizing the “growing” and processing of animals to produce meat, eggs, and milk at the lowest possible costs. Chickens, turkeys, cattle, and swine/pigs are the most common factory farm animals, an estimated 10 billion of which are slaughtered each year in the United States alone. Given predictions that the global demand for livestock foods will more than double over the next 20 years, factory farming will likely continue to expand around the world. Critics argue that the environmental, social, health and animal welfare costs of expanding factory farming practices are too high (Pollan, 2006).

Negative Effects of Factory Farming

The European Union currently has higher minimum standards than the United States for the legal protection of farm animals, but myriad problems persist. Critics note the negative repercussions of factory farming include compromised livestock health and welfare; threats to the health of people and other animals in the ecosystem; high outputs of methane and high concentrations of manure, leading to air, ground, and water pollution; heavy reliance on water and fossil fuels, as well as increasing amounts of land, for the production of feed; and fuel and pollution issues linked to the processing and transport of animals. Factory farming has led to the rise of a class of illnesses among livestock now called “production diseases” that result from diets designed to maximize growth instead of maintain long-term health, as well as injuries and infections resulting from the conditions in which they are kept ...