More Information About Factory Farms

In my freshman seminar class on Thursday, I leaned a lot more about factory farming. We watched videos from the meatrix. It is a website where you can learn a lot about factory farming, we watched the videos from the website and I actually learned a few things that I didn't know.

One thing I learned is that factory farms have been trying to take over family farms for a long time to try and grow and earn more profit. They have been packing animals so closely together that they give the animals so much antibiotics just to stay alive. Now, antibiotic resistant germs have been starting to occur. Many of the animals also never see daylight or get a breath of real fresh air.

In dairy factories, the cows are kept in small sheds that many never move or leave. Even with the antibiotics, the cows still become sick, and they get their tails cut off. In addition, the cows are given a RBGH growth hormone that Canada and the European Union have both banned. The calves of the cows are also separated from them at birth. They are given a formula that is partially made from cows blood which can cause spreading of mad cow disease.

In contuation, I found out about the actual slaughtering house where they slaughter the animals. The workers who work here are very risky. Meat packing is the most dangerous job in the nation. Manure also gets into the meat at these packing stations spreading E. Coli.

For more information or to see the meatrix videos go to: http://www.themeatrix.com/

What makes Chipotle important?

Chipotle combines everything that a fast food restaurant could be, but with food that actually is made right. Chipotle has been actually trying to make things change. They have started a good example for our world to follow. Hopefully, they can keep it up and eventually get all of their meat 100% from local family farmers.

The economy in The United States has been low, so I know it is hard for a lot of families to afford food that hasn't been inhumanely processed. This is why Chipotle is a great alternative. If a family makes a few budget cuts, they can easily afford to buy Chipotle and easily have the potential to save an innocent animal's life. One day it will be amazing if all families could afford to feed their families like this. It is definitely a more healthy option due to the chemicals and hormones being added to the processed food.

If Chipotle keeps running, I hope that one day that they can take control of the fast food chain. They could have the power to make all fast food places want to change. It just takes us, people, to make them make the change.

Chipotle

Chipotle has become really popular in many parts of The United States. It combines the quick, cheap service of fast food, but it has a little secret. Chipotle has a little saying that they maintain, "food with integrity." This means they use the best sustainably raised food with great taste, nutrition, and value. They support family farmers who take care of their animals.

In addition, they try to not use animals that have had hormones or antibiotics put in to their system. For instance, they try to find dairy cows that do not have synthetic hormones put in to them. They want to use organic products when possible as well.

Chipotle tries their hardest to get the best meat. Their pork is 100% from farmers who raise their pigs humanely. Their beef is 85% naturally raised, but it is very hard now a days to find someone that meets their standards. They do not want to stop til they reach 100%. Their dairy products come from 35% pasture-raised cows. The chicken is also 100% hormone and antibiotic free.

For more information about chipotle, you can go to their website:  http://www.chipotle.com/en-US/fwi/fwi.aspx

Why was Issue 2 so Important?

Issue 2 was a key debate in the 2009 election, many people who love animals were a key in the Issue. Many livestock on Ohio farms are very poorly mistreated, animals have feelings too and should be treated as such. Just because it will be costly to farmers does not mean that animals should be punished. Issue 2 passes because of space, inhumanity, and creation of unfair disabilities to the animals.

In many Ohio farms birds, pigs, and calves are so cramped in crates that they can not move to turn around. The hens on these farms can not even spread their wings or even try to get comfortable. The pigs and calves are so tightly cramped in crates that sometimes they can not even stand or take one step forward. Also, the animals are so packed together that they become aggressive and start to fight amongst themselves, sometimes resulting in death.

In addition, animals are given hormones, steroids, or antibiotics to improve their growing process. Chickens in certain areas are given growth hormones to improve the size of their thighs and breasts for more meat and of course more profit. As a result, the chicken can not even support it's own weight. Likewise, turkeys are given growth hormones that before the age one they die if not slaughtered in time. In order to save money on the farm, many livestock are just not fed or given the proper nutrition to survive as well. Further more, livestock are supposed to be stunned before slaughtering. However, this is not always the case. They are skinned alive, still able to feel the pain.

In conclusion, farm animals should be treated fairly and kindly even if they are raised for just meat. Their moments of life should be worth living, not remembered as suffering and torture. The rule "treat others as you would want to be treated" should be applied here to some extent. Issue 2 was very important to pass because of the lack of room provided, unfair treatment, and harmful consequences to animals.

Issue 2

In Ohio, Issue 2 came in to the ballot in 2009 for mistreated animals on factory farms. It created thirteen Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board to establish standards for governing the care of livestock and poultry. It requires minimal standards, approved by the Humane Society of the United States to maintain food safety, encourage locally grown and raised foods, and protect Ohio's farms and families. The board includes thirteen Ohio residents including representatives of family farms, farming organizations, food safety experts, veterinarians, consumers, someone from the agriculture department from an Ohio university or college, and a county humane society representative. The board will consider agricultural best practices for care and well-being, disease prevention, animal morbidity and mortality data, food safety practices, and the protection of local, affordable food supplies (Ohio 1).

Issue 2 did pass in Ohio. I am very glad it did, but it is still going to take a long time to change anything. The board is going to have to work very hard at it. I hope everyone cooperates to these new regulations. Of course, I know not everyone will, but I hope eventually we can live in a fair, humane world for factory farm animals.

"Ohio Livestock Care Standards, Issue 2 (2009)." Ballotpedia.org. 17 Oct 2010 <http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Ohio_Livestock_Care_Standards,_Issue_2_(2009)>.

Why do I think Factory Farms are wrong?

Factory farming is wrong in my opinion because it disregards parts of nature. It's a cruel way to make money, and people do not care about the animals as individuals. They keep them in confinement and pretty much torture them to make a profit. Yes, they may need money. Does this mean you can just ruin an animal's life though?

Everyday many animals die during the process of factory farming, but it still continues. I believe that this should not happen ever. Animals suffer because of the debeaking, intensive confinement, and disease in these factory farm conditions.

Factory farms can also be harmful to human beings whether you eat meat or not. The hormones and antibiotics used on the animals to make them be immune to disease and to grow bigger are ate by us. When you buy meat, it's more likely that you are eating factory farm meat. All of this can be potentially dangerous to human beings. Also, just because animals get medicine to not become sick does not mean that they work. A lot of animals still get sick and it's put out to the consumer market. If you do not eat meat, factory farms can still have an effect on you. Many of the bacteria and hormones come out as animal waste which sometimes makes its way to our waterways. It pollutes are water and can harm all of us.

More on Factory Farming

As I stated in my last post, there are many other animals in factory farms. Cows, hogs, and many more. I found more information about the different kinds of cows and some about hogs, and they're life within a factory farm.

Cows give us humans so much already. For instance, milk, cheese, and yogurt. We do a horrible job at returning the favor. Cows are given growth hormones and extremely rich diets. Dairy cows give milk when pregnant. Because it takes a lot of energy, they are given more high-energy feed. The feed could have metabolic consequences including several illnesses that could kill the cow. Downed cattle, also called sick cattle, were abandoned for hours at faculties in Maryland, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Texas. They were in horrible health. Downed cattle have higher risks of contamination by E. Coli, salmonella, and mad cow disease because they are in fences and their immune systems are weak. Cows when big enough to be slaughtered are rounded up and put into feeding lots, large pens that hold hundreds of cows to be slaughtered. At the slaughterhouse, cows are hit unconscious by a stunning blow to the head. Then, hung by the back legs and throats are cut (Morse 1).

Hogs are another animal commonly mistreated in factory farms. Hogs are normally smart, social creatures, but their pins are so overcrowded that they usually fight each other sometimes resulting in death. Because of the agressiveness, hogs have their tail docked to prevent it from being bitten off. In addition, hogs are removed from their mother as soon as one week after birth. They are then put in to pens with hundreds of other hogs. The mothers of the baby hogs give birth in a crate that is usually two feet wide by seven feet long.

As you may already know, there are many more problems going along with animal abuse at factory farms. These are just a few examples. I am sure that not everything has been found, but these are definitely reasons enough to make it stop. 

What goes on behind the doors of a factory farm?

Now I shared the basic definition of factory farming, but I want to know what actually happens at a factory farm. I want to learn what happens to the animals, and what kind of consequences they experience everyday. Many animals I know go through this kind of treatment since the day they are born to the day they are killed. I've always wanted to research more about what happens to them, and this is a way I can let other people know what goes on as well.

First, people should know there are many different kinds of factory farms. For instance, chickens can be used for their egg production or for their meat. Cows can be used for their meat or for their milk. Hogs and other kinds of animals are mostly to be used for their meat.

Chickens and hens are raised in conditions that do not allow them to lie down, turn or extend their limbs or wings. When in confinement, chickens can be aggressive which can be fatal, so farmers end up debeaking the chickens. An egg ranch in California killed about thirty thousand hens that were no longer productive by throwing them into wood chippers. Broilers, chickens that are used for meat, live in huge pins forty feet wide by five hundred feet long that is holding approximately thirty thousand birds. The broiler birds are also given growth hormones, so the birds will have large thighs and breasts. It makes the bones so heavy that sometimes their bones can not even support them. The slaughtering process of the broiler chicken is absolutely horrific. They are hung by their feet on racks and pulled through a bath of electrified water to stun them. Keeping the birds alive is for the most desirable meat. After the stun bath, their necks are sliced to bleed them to death. Last, they are placed in scalding hot water to loosen their feathers. Three million of the seven million chickens killed in 1993 were put into the scalding tank of water alive (Morse 1).

These are only a few things that I have found so far. There are many others, and I will continue to post what I find as I go along in my research.

Morse, Sherry. "Mistreatment of Farm animals." Buzzle.com. 6 Nov 2010 <http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/6-2-2003-41131.asp>.

What exactly is Factory Farming?

As I write this blog, some may read it and have no clue what I am talking about. Therefore, I decided my first post about factory farming should be about what factory farming actually is.

The web definition of factory farming says it is, "the modern practice of raising animals or crops for food in extreme confinement, in order to maxamize profits" (Dorris 1). Yes, this is true. In my words though, factory farming is a very cruel harsh way to earn money reguardless of how the animals feel. The animals in these factory farms are treated very poorly. In the factory farm, the animals are packed together and given chemicals, hormones, pesticides, and antibiotics. A lot of these will cause negative effects to the animals physically and mentally.

In addition, factory farming is just not about the poor treatment to farm animals. Factory farms can also include crops. Crops are often given pesticides and fertilizers as well. These chemicals can cause bad health to humans as well. Crops with chemicals can also be bad for the environment as well. They cause pollution from run off and then contaminate the soil, water, and wildlife.  

Sources

 Dorris, Fin. Factory Farming FAQ. 3 October 2010  <http://animalrights.about.com/od/animalsusedforfood/tp/FactoryFarmingFAQ.htm>.