Factory farms started in the 1920's shortly after Vitamins A and D were discovered. Having Vitamin A and D meant that the vitamins could be added to the animals feed, which didn't require the animals to have exposure to the outside or exercise. The animals could be kept inside and fed the vitamin enriched foods. This allowed farmers to produce many more animals in a smaller space, increasing profits and lowering the price to consumers. It's a lot more cost effective to cram thousands of cows in barns and chickens in cages. This way the farmers don't have to have the acreage or the increased manpower. Cheap meat is good right? It may seems like that, but I'll let you draw your own conclusion.
Factory farms are owned by large corporations and are motivated only by profit. Did you know that 3% of farms produce about 62% of our meat? These factory farms are pushing out small farmers because of the power that they possess to produce cheap meat. Corporate owned factory farms have no link to their community like the small farmers do. The meat is produced and shipped sometimes thousands of miles away, whereas small farmers depend on their community for their profit. I don't know about you, but I like to know where my meat is coming from and have a personal connection with a man and his animals. There's that hippy part of me.
Factory farming is very hard on the environment. Factory farms produce large quantities of waste that is difficult to dispose of. This waste emits greenhouse gases, and leaks into lakes, rivers and ground water, putting our drinking water at risk. This kind of pollution does not happen at a sustainable, organic farm. Factory farms produce meat that is nutrionally deficient in comparison to organically grown meat, which contains more minerals, vitamins and antioxidants.
Now on to the hard part....how the animals are treated in factory farms. Lets look at cows first. As you can imagine, cows are messy creatures and when crammed together can make a pretty big mess. Most of these cows are kept in cement barns where their poop can be cleaned easily with hoses and drainage systems. Nonetheless, it's still pretty gross. I would ask you to envision these cows crammed into the barns pooping everywhere, versus the cows out in pasture taking a crap. A lot different. Well, that is why the use of antibiotics started. The animals are fed antibiotics to ward off diseases. This is also a big problem since those antibiotics are spread to humans through the meat, which causes antibiotic resistance in us as well. Ever heard of Mad Cow disease? Well, that was the result of these farms. Farmers were feeding the cattle dead animals parts, which is believed to have led to the whole Mad Cow thing.
Wow, what a life. No fresh air, no grass, no sunshine. Just a concrete box with endless amounts of food. Don't fool yourself into thinking they get out of here. The only time the cows leave here is to be milked or to be slaughtered. Now compare this picture to this one...
Hahahaha! I thought it was funny. Here is a legitimate one now...
Big difference. Not a lot needs to be said about how these animals are treated after seeing those pictures.
Now, on to chickens. Chickens used to produce eggs are crammed in to cages like this:
The chickens will live their entire lives like this, unable to even spread out their wings. Often times, they are put in to cages with other hens. The conditions are stressful on the birds, which causes them to peck at eachother. Birds are then debeaked to prevent the pecking. Debeaking is painful and looks like this:
Meat chickens are grown for 6 weeks until slaughter. The conditions they live in look like this:
Meat chickens are fed a high fat diet full of crappy ingredients, which are spread to us humans through the meat. Chickens are also given antibiotics because of the high rate of disease in these conditions. I like this picture better...
Happy chickens. Just love it.
So where would you rather get your meat? Understand that when you go to the grocery store, like Safeway and buy a regular steak or chicken breast or eggs, you are getting it from the factory farms(look at the pics again). Or, you can make the choice to buy meat and dairy products from animals who are treated humanely. Even if you don't care about animals being tortured, the health benefits alone should turn someone off of factory farmed meat. Now don't get me wrong, I am not perfect. But, I can do my best to only buy meat and eggs from responsible farmers.
The biggest excuse people use is ignorance. You want to pretend that these issues don't exist and you blindly purchase your meat from the store, turning off your brain. The other excuse is cost. You tell yourself you can't afford to buy organic meat. Well, you know what...I can't either, but I do. I make it happen by researching and buying smart. People can't afford cigarettes, beer or ice cream either, but I bet you find a way if it's a luxury item that you really enjoy. It's no excuse. I would rather see people eat no meat than support these factory farms. They are inhumane, unhealthy and a detriment to the local farmer. Please support your local farmer. Okay, I'll stop ranting now. But, one more thing...
God's given this to us. Let's take care of it responsibly, humanely and with wisdom. Which picture do you think better shows God's intentions for his creation?
Psalms 8: 3-9
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
And the son of man that You visit him?
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.
You have put all things under his feet,
Even the beasts of the field,
And the fish of the sea
That pass through the paths of the seas.
How excellent is Your name in all the earth!
I like to know where my meat is coming from too.
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