Kelly Rogowski
May 12, 2011
Environmental Ethics
Factory Farming
Malicious. Necessary. Unethical. Profitable. These are just a few adjectives which society pairs
with the practice of factory farming. Factory Farming is an industrial farming technique which
confines livestock to extremely tight spaces for the sake of human consumption. The main goal
of factory farming is to produce the highest output while maximizing profits. Cows, pigs,
chickens, and turkeys are the four main animals involved in the process and are constantly put at
risk for the sake of maximizing output. The animals are given a variety of medicines in order to
benefit the farmer such as growth hormones, pesticides, and antibiotics in order to reduce the risk
of disease. Unfortunately, the animals are not the only ones who are experiencing the effects of
factory farming; humans and the environment are also negatively affected by the aftermath of
industrialized farming through the spread of bacteria, higher risk of contracting disease, and the
depletion of natural resources. However, some people—especially the farmers involved—see
this type of farming as an extremely beneficial practice to society. Various advantages of factory
farming are allowing meat prices to be low, minimizing the amount of land needed to raise
livestock, and efficient production of meat which feeds the world. Despite every benefit one
may think of to support factory farming, it is apparent that it is extremely unethical to the lives of
animals, along with being harmful to humans and our environment. Livestock in factory farms
are kept in areas which restrict any movement, force fed hormones and antibiotics, and then
inhumanely slaughtered. Factory farming is a practice which should end for the sake of the
animals, humans, and our environment.
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Farm Sanctuary defines factory farming as “an attitude that regards animals and the
natural world merely as commodities to be exploited for profit. This attitude has led to
institutionalized animal cruelty, massive environmental destruction, and animal and human
health risks”.1 This definition leads to the first main concern with factory farming, the ethical
treatment of animals. Livestock are put into metal buildings which allow these animals to barely
move their entire life: chickens cannot flap their wings; pigs are forced to bite other pig’s tails
for more space. Sunlight and fresh air fail to be an option until they are sent on the trucks to the
slaughterhouses. The number of livestock slaughtered daily is staggering: 90,000 cows are
slaughtered every 24 hours, 14,000 chickens are slaughtered every minute. 1 The grand total of
animals slaughtered per year is 10 billion.2 Who is responsible for these depressing and drastic
statistics? Two percent of all farms in the United States are responsible for over 40% of meat
production. 3 Humans are also at serious risk due to factory farming. Humans who engage in a
carnivorous diet are more likely to contract diseases such as heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes,
and cancer. Also, new diseases are appearing relating to animal consumption, such as
Creutzfeldt - Jakob disease (Mad Cow Disease) and avian influenza (bird flu). A total of 500
deaths and 76 million cases of food related illnesses occur every year.2 Factory farming greatly
harms our environment, also. In order to create more land for growing crops for animal feed,
entire ecosystems are being depleted, such as forests and wetlands. Furthermore, agricultural
animal waste is being runoff into our waterways; our lakes and rivers are left infected with
bacteria and remains a harmful threat to the fish living in them. Recent reports by the USDA
state that “animals in the US meat industry produce 61 million tons of waste each year, which is
“Factory Farming,” Farm Sanctuary, accessed May 8, 2011, http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/
“Short List: What’s Wrong with Factory Farming?,” Organic Consumers Association, accessed May 8, 2011,
http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/shortlist031604.cfm
3
“Factory Farming,” Sustainable Table, accessed May 9, 2011,
http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/factoryfarming/
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2
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130 times the volume of human waste—or five tons for every US citizen”. 4 All of these
statistics presented display the true facts of factory farming and their extremely negative
influence on our entire planet.
Many believe that factory farms are extremely beneficial to today’s society for a variety
of reasons. The past ten years have been economically difficult for not only the United States,
but for the entire world. People struggle to find cheap yet nutritious food to feed themselves
along with their family. Factory farming is a means for providing cheap, protein-packed meat
for almost anyone. Without industrialized farming, many poor neighborhoods, families, and
individuals would have a greater struggle in attempting to consume a somewhat nutritious diet.
Also, the high consumption of meat in our country will continue to stay, no matter how many
efforts to impose a vegetarian society. For that matter, the meat industry should be as efficient
and productive like every other service which America provides. Restricting one industry to
decrease productivity would affect the farmers, grocery stores, and the consumers. American
society is based on the idea of utilitarianism: providing the greatest benefits for the greatest good.
Raising, slaughtering, and consuming livestock has always been a way of life in virtually every
country on this planet. As a unit, we see ourselves greater than animals in almost every case,
hence the continuance of the meat industry. We benefit from factory farming because we are
provided with cheap meat, it provides many jobs, and accounts for the majority of sales in
grocery stores, fast food chains, and restaurants. Although animals are slaughtered, a greater
number benefit from factory farming.
“Disturbing Facts on Factory Farming & Food Safety,” Organic Consumers Association, accessed May 10, 2011,
http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/factoryfarm.cfm
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Although these may be seen as valid reasons, factory farming raises animals at a rapid
rate, treats them in extremely inhumane ways, and then after a short life are quickly slaughtered.
Americans enjoy eating meat—burgers, chicken sandwiches, or hotdogs. If these facts of
inhumane animal abuse or deadly effects on the environment are not enough to show the
disadvantages of factory farming, perhaps realizing what we are eating can make a difference.
According to a report by the USDA, they estimate that “89% of US beef patties contain traces of
deadly E. coli”. 5 Salmonella poisoning has increased 600% in ten years from the consumption of
undercooked eggs. 5 Lastly, 90% of chickens are sick with chicken cancer at the time of
slaughter.
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The fact that humans are at great risk of becoming ill from consuming meat raised
on factory farms is worrisome. How much effort will it take to realize the deadly effects of
industrialized farming is harming more than just the animals, but also us and the already-introuble environment.
Factory farming has one primary goal. They are not concerned that none of their animals
will fail to see sunlight for years until they are sent to the slaughterhouse. More and more human
beings are contracting fatal diseases because of consuming bacteria-infested meat, but that is
their own personal problem. Ecosystems are being destroyed in order to turn them into cropland
for animal feed, because we somehow have to feed these animals. None of these are important
to the government who support industrialized farming or the people who work on them, because
America has taught us to be successful. Success is money. Therefore, factory farms are put in
place in order to produce the most output for America in order to gain the most profit. Clearly
the livestock, humans, and the environment are all taking a serious toll because of this practice.
An alternative besides turning vegetarianism is purchasing organic products; these are made by
“Short list: What’s Wrong with Factory Farming?,” Organic Consumers Association, accessed May 11, 2011,
http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/shortlist031604.cfm
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animals treated humanely, live a healthy life, and are pesticide free. Whenever eating meat,
think about the institution being supported from that purchase—and then think again.
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Works Cited
“Disturbing Facts on Factory Farming & Food Safety,” Organic Consumers Association,
accessed May 10, 2011,
http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/factoryfarm.cfm
“Factory Farming,” Farm Sanctuary, accessed May 8, 2011,
http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/
“Factory Farming,” Sustainable Table, accessed May 9, 2011,
http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/factoryfarming/
“Short list: What’s Wrong with Factory Farming?,” Organic Consumers Association, accessed
May 11, 2011,
http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/shortlist031604.cfm
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