...The Effects of Factory Farming on Human Life DeVry University The Effects of Factory Farming on Human Life A lot of consumers who purchase food items from the supermarket to feed themselves or their families are not concerned with how the products they purchase will affect them or their loved ones. Some people are completely unaware of how the meats they consume are processed and manufactured. Some individuals who purchase a fresh hot meal from a fast food restaurant or cook a nice home cooked meal don’t have an inkling about where they foods they consume come from. A lot of individuals are under the impression that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) operates in the best interest of the consumer. Over the years, the decline of family farms and increase of factory farming has caused harmful effects on human life. Some health problems that effect consumers are respiratory infections, food poisonings, obesity, E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and obesity. A lot of individuals are becoming increasingly aware of the health effects of factory farming. Two solutions that would help decrease the harmful effects of factory farming are making the living and manufacturing conditions of the livestock more humane. Another solution to help decrease the harmful effects of factory farming are feeding the livestock a natural diet with limited use of antibiotics and pesticides. The decline in family farms has caused a number of health concerns for some individuals...
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...What's better than burgers on the grill, or crispy bacon with breakfast? To most Americans, nothing. In fact, in 2012, Americans consumed approximately 50 billion burgers and 627 million pounds of bacon. Contrary to popular belief, all this meat is not raised on Old McDonald's farm ("Factory-Farming.com", 2010-2015). As arable land has declined over the last 100 years along with farmers as a percentage of the U.S. population, factory farms have taken their place ("How is Land in The United States Used? A Focus on Agricultural Land", n.d.). However, while factory farms produce more food optimizing economies of scale, modern technologies, and genetic engineering, factory farming more often than not incorporate abusive treatment to the animals. Factory Farming is an inhumane way of producing meat and dairy products due to its common practices of confined living conditions, wide usage of antibiotics and genetic engineering, and slaughterhouse practices. One of the most common forms of animal cruelty in factory farms is the overcrowded and confined living areas of the animals. Chickens are the most confined animal in Factory Farming with up to 120,000 birds on one farm. (Madhani, 2015). Both egg-laying hens and fryer chickens are housed in “battery cages”. Battery cages hold between five and ten hens with each hen allotted between 67 - 76 sq. inches (less than the size of a standard sheet of letter paper). Being confined to such a small area creates multiple physical and mental...
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...McKenzie 15 December 2015 Should Factory Farming Be Acceptable in Our Society? Since the past fifty years, farming operations in the United States have developed from individualized production to mass production, which is known today as factory farming. Factory farming is a method of food and fiber production which exploits animals in a confined environment (Marcus). As the demand for meat continues to increase, the modern agricultural practice of factory farming also continues to increase to meet the food consumption of humans. Factory farms consist of a large number of animals confined in small spaces to minimize operation costs; this mass production has decreased the price of meat as the factories produce an excess amount of meat to satisfy the demand. However, although Americans are fulfilled with the abundant amount of cheap meat, the practice of factory farming causes serious consequences for animals, humans, and the environment. This unhealthy practice has led to problems such as pollution, inhuman animal treatment, and human illness. Therefore, for all these reasons, many people have stated that factory farming is morally and ethically wrong. Since factory farms wield tremendous power in our society, they have become a controversial topic, with many people questioning whether they are detrimental or beneficial to our society. While opponents believe that the costs of factory farming outweigh the benefits, supporters rather believe that factory farming is needed in our current...
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...How We Treat the Animals We Eat Angela M Groves DeVry University How We Treat the Animals We Eat Are the factory farms we buy our meat from treating animals humanely? Animal mistreatment is illegal and we can make a difference to put a stop to it. According to Ethical Farms “Some of the largest US factory farms refuse to uphold humane USDA and OSHA standards, having unsanitary, unhealthy conditions and animal rights violations. In 1958, the US government composed the Humane Slaughter Act that is not enforced” (Ethical Farms, 2010). There are 7 statutes in effect that comprise the Humane Slaughter Act. Included in these sections are Congress' statement that livestock must be slaughtered in a humane manner to prevent needless suffering, research methods on humane methods of slaughter, the non-applicability of these statutes to religious or ritual slaughter, and the investigation into the care of non-ambulatory livestock. There are farms that follow the Humane Slaughter Act in raising their livestock that we can purchase our food from, like Humane Farms for example. By aligning our consumerism with Restaurants and grocery store chains that purchase from humane farms we can make an impact. Also, supporting an Animal Rights group like The American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals(ASPCA) or The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals(PETA) can make a big difference. You can support them either monetarily or by volunteering your time in your local area. In...
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...away as the years go by. The lives of the animals are becoming devalued while the demand for their bodies increase. Factory farmers have been restricting the lives of their live-stock. Animals in factory farms are living lives which are far from the lifestyles that nature had intended for them. After reading many articles about the negative effects factory farming has on animals, I now know what truly goes on behind the walls of factory farms. I’ve been so disgusted by this that I’ve decided to eat less meat and consume organic products. Consumers of meat need to be aware of this foul practice. This not only affects the animals, but it also affects the consumer and the environment. Factory farming is not only inhumane,...
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...Animal Ethics The issue regarding the morality on whether or not people should consume meat has been debated for several decades. Factory farms, where animals are raised in filthy conditions, pumped with antibiotics and growth hormones, and fed a diet that includes animal bi-products, are viewed by animal rights activists to be inhumane and torturous. Since the beginning of time, the human race has been consuming meat. In the book of Genesis, it says “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; and just as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything”. In a traditional sense, I believe it’s morally acceptable to eat meat if the animal is raised on a good farm. This is where the animal is treated in a humane way by allowing them to roam and graze freely in conditions similar to their natural habitat. Additionally, their life span is much longer than that of an animal living on a factory farm. This supports the view that animals should not be caused to suffer. However, I’ve never given much thought about this subject matter prior to taking this class, and in all probability have been eating meat from factory farms. Thus, I will write about factory farms, despite my newly acquired position. Even though I believe it’s acceptable to consume meat, and my personal experience is more than likely related to factory farms, there are several valid arguments against them. The most significant argument is regarding the inhumane, torturous treatment these animals...
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...America is steadily declining through the practice of "factory farming." Factory farming is performed by the few large companies controlling food processing in America, it is vile and takes away humanity from those who continue to do it. It is the process in which farms "manufacture" food in unhealthy environments rather than safely breed livestock. It negatively affects the welfare of animals and the companies put the value of efficiency and profit before the health and safety of the animals. The repercussions of the choice to make these environments unhealthy by large corporations and keep them that way without trying to fix them further the damage to the treatment of livestock and the nutritional damage to America. It is imperative that America takes a stand as a nation to stop the process of factory farming and its effects, before the corporations go too far to the point where it is unstoppable. Factory farming is an increasing epidemic in the world of farming, we need to stop this before it is no longer preventable. A large portion of the population in America actually have no idea how livestock is taken care of by the corporations that they buy from. They do not know that the animals are so carelessly handled, that the animals are looked at as materials rather than actual living produce. In the documentary "Food, Inc." (2010) the producers of the movie actually get an inside view of the process of factory farming. The scene from Chapter 1: "Fast Food to All Food"...
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...creation of factory farming, an inhumane and unjustifiable way to get food faster. After World War II, the main goal of farmers was to mass produce as much product as possible at the lowest rate possible. This then led to the unethical treatment of these animals because they were kept in a very confined environment. These giant animal farms started in the 1970s, livestock farmers weren’t able to keep up with the rise of these massive confined animal feeding...
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...Nutrition Assignment Issues in Agricultural Practices-Factory Farming 1. Virtually all chickens raised for their flesh spend their lives crammed into massive, windowless sheds that typically hold as many as 40,000 birds each. A chicken shed is filled with dust, feathers and ammonia fill the air and fans turn it into airborne sandpaper, rubbing skin raw. The intense confinement and extreme crowding on factory farms also results in unimaginable filth and disease. chickens are forced to breathe ammonia and particulate matter from feces and feathers all day long. Many suffer from chronic respiratory diseases, weakened immune systems, bronchitis, and “ammonia burn,” a painful eye condition. A journalist that experienced the conditions described it in his words saying, “I was almost knocked to the ground by the overpowering smell of feces and ammonia. My eyes burned and so did my lungs, and I could neither see nor breathe …. There must have been 30,000 chickens sitting silently on the floor in front of me. They didn’t move, didn’t cluck”. Ultimately the ways the chickens are treated is inhumane, brought up in crammed cages, and disease infested sheds, feces everywhere, while ammonia fills the air choking anyone who inhales, all while getting pumped with drugs, getting debeaked and abused just to get slaughtered alive down the road. 2. The common treatment practices are chickens get genetically manipulated and regularly dosed with drugs to make them...
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...Today’s farms not only abuse the animals but also produce harmful diseases and environmental hazards to each and every one of us, regardless whether you consume these animals of not. The U.S. government should ban the use of factory farming animals Factory farming should be illegal in the United States because the food produce is poor quality food. The meat from the animals in factory farms is mechanically removed, which means it it ripped from the bone and other parts of the body by a machine(Hurst). Factory farms even use parts of the body that most people wouldn't use such as: lips, eyes, testicels, and anal tracts are included in sausage and patties(Hurst). The excess meat is then blended up and added in with the other meat to make a larger profit. The food from factory farms may be cheaper the nutritional foods. Organic food continues to cost on average several times more than food from factory farms, but no one goes to farmers’ markets for bargains. But not all costs can be measured by a price tag. Once you become sick with health problems due to the poor quality of the food and have to pay for treatment. The animals are injected with a variety of drugs and hormones to increase growth and production ("Natural resources defense council"). Which is then passed onto the consumer in the food or meal making the food unhealthy for your body ("Natural resources defense council"). The drugs and hormones that are in the food that you ingest can disrupt the human hormone balance...
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...I'm Not a Vegetarian! But . . . Should the Animals Eaten Have Rights? Oh, no! That steak is from a living animal that breathes the same air as humans. Should this animal have to be killed and butchered to become something humans use for survival? All living beings should have certain rights, correct? The answer is a profound . . . yes, and no. Animals have been eaten for billions of years in order to sustain the human race. That will never change. For example, a hunter will go out on an early Saturday morning just when the sun is rising to look for a deer to kill so the family will have meat to eat. After a period of time, several deer are spotted fifty yards away in a clearing. With careful aim, a single shot is placed directly behind a deer’s shoulder that results in, dinner for the evening. Even though animals must be killed in order to supply the humans with meat . . . they should have certain rights prior to their demise. Animal abuse in slaughterhouses is caused by trying to process more animals than the slaughterhouses can handle in order to maximize profits, along with using outdated processing methods with under maintained equipment; however, this problem can be solved by incorporating well maintained up-to-date processing equipment and better internal quality controls. Looking back, as reported by Farm Forward, n.d.: In the last 70 years—a tiny blip in the history of farming—cruel, unsustainable factory farms have grown to the point where they produce...
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...Argument for Animal Rights Ever since the society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in England in 1824 was formed, there have been long running debates on the topic of animal rights. The first societies were formed to protect and maintain humane treatment of work animals, such as horses, cattle, and house hold pets. Towards the end of the nineteenth century more organizations were formed, this time to protest the use of animals in scientific experimentation. Today groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have continued these traditional fights as well as adding new agendas. "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; The Declaration of Independence holds these rights to be self evident and unalienable. In the eighteenth century when these words were written they were called natural rights, today we call them human rights" (McShea, 34). The issue of whether or not to grant animals rights such as those humans retain, is a greatly disputed issue. Animal right is an extremely intricate issue that involves the question of animal farming, animal experimentation, and animal activists. There are not many happy farmers milking their cows on the farm anymore; this is the food industry; it is dirty; it is unsafe, and it is a massacre of innocent animals. Cows, chickens, pigs, and other animals processed into food are not kept on a farm; they are crowded into pens and cages that are too small to even allow the animal to turn around (Krizmanic,...
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...PHI 2010: Final Draft. Miami Dade College Philosophy Reduce Animal Cruelty by increasing vegan products I will demonstrate my argument on this research paper mainly about animal’s cruelty in factory farms, which is raising concerns about our environment and health. Many people are becoming vegetarian; some of them because of maintaining a healthy diet but others are against bad treatment and suffering of animals before they are killed. Today’s human society has become less sensitive to animals’ rights and their welfare by producing millions of factory farms to increase meat production as well as poultry and dairy based products. Factory farmers only care about their wealth and high numbers of sales, no matter the quality of our food or health issues while consuming meat full of antibiotics and hormones. [http://realtruth.org/articles/070601-004-ff.html] Some researches have shown; 47 billion animals are killed in food production, plus many more died during transport in overcrowded trucks. Moreover, these animal’s rights are slaughter when they are not longer productive, being thrown into plastic bags to slowly suffocate or to feed other animal while they are still alive. It is said, that during food production piglet, cows or chicken suffer needless mutations. Producing discomfort, stress and pain to these animals [http://www.bornfreeusa.org/facts.php?p=454&mora=1] Then, scientists have linked these issues to problems with our food quality and safety. An increased...
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...Nov. 2013. The article Free Range by Jennifer Chait explained the meaning of Free Range Farms and the differences between Organic and Free Range Farming. Free Range Farms are described as meat and produce from animals that were allowed to roam freely or had access to outdoor spaces. Organic Foods though the animal should be allowed to roam and graze freely like Free Range Farms, must be certified and meet a stringent criteria. Free Range Farms can also be referred to as Free-roaming, Cage-free or Pasture raised. Free Range Farms are often confused with Organic Farms, explain above they are similar but have differences. Free Range farming incorporates meats eggs and dairy farming. I hope to explain further in my paper the definitions of Free Range. What allows farmers to claim Free Range and what consumers should look for when wanting authentic Free Range Farming products? Pritchard, Forrest. "3 Secrets of Free-Range Farms." Smith Meadows. Smith Meadows, 24 May 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2013. In this very informative article by Forrest Pritchard, 3 Secrets of Free-Range Farms the importance of Free Range Farms on the eco-system and our environment is thoroughly explained. Pritchard explained the cycle where earth worms burrows through the soil irrigating; this helps farmers get ready for planting. Worms become food for livestock such as chickens; it is the circle of life. Free Range Farms need to grow grass year round to feed livestock, growing grass requires limited or no human...
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...Introduction Every day, despite their screams of terror and cries for help thousands of animals are murdered for the sake of human nourishment. It has been estimated that in 2002 factory farms made up 99% of all animals raised and slaughtered in the United States (Farm Forward, 2004). Today those numbers only continue to grow both in USA and Canada. Despite the accounts of violence from meat workers and the opinion of the public, factory farms are an industry that continues to grow and flourish today. Ultimately showing that human consumption of meat is not only unnecessary it is cruel as well. Aggressive Meatworkers The primary way that North Americans get meat into our grocery stores and eventfully onto their tables is through the unfortunate invention of factory farms. Despite the unsanitary and inhumane conditions that the animals in these factories must endure the worst cruelties from the employees themselves. A 2013...
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