Factory Farming: The Mistreatment Of Nonhuman Animals

“This is horrible! I can’t even watch this!” Those were my immediate thoughts the first time my eyes were opened to the inhumane animal cruelty on factory farms. Factory farming enables mass production to supply the demands of today’s society but also enables the cruel treatment of animals. We need to end the cruelty and abuse that these animals have to endure at the factory farms because it causes loss to the business, reduces the quality of the product produced, and endangers the health of those who buy the product. We can promote humane treatment of factory farm animals by prevention through education, by enforcing humane laws by being an example of humane animal treatment, and by donating and/or

It’s problematic that we don’t question the food we eat whether it be from McDonalds or a fancy upscale restaurant. We need to be more aware of what is going on around us especially when the food we eat is causing an array of health issues for us. The unsanitary conditions found within the factory farm industry contributes to the pathogens found in the meat we eat. As the saying goes you get what you pay for. Factory farming is based upon producing large quantities of meat at a very low cost. This driving force behind the system is not worth getting food poising or something detrimental. In the chapter “Influence / Speechlessness” the habitats of the chickens are displayed “jamming deformed, drugged,

Factory Farming is an increasing industry in the United States. These large farms, which evidently appear to be more like slaughterhouses than the typical farms a person can imagine are located throughout the United States. These factory farms contain animals ranging from chickens, sheep, goats, cows, turkeys, and pigs, they also contain dairy products. The conditions for the animals and the employees of these factory farms are inhumane and vile. Life behind the walls of the factory farm is both unsanitary for the animals and the employees. Employees are forced to endure long hours and poor treatment. Animals in these conditions withstand living in cages and are forced to live in uninhabitable ways.

A poll conducted by the ASPCA revealed that 94% of Americans believe that production animals, specifically those raised for food, deserve to live a comfortable life free of cruelty and neglect. Despite this belief, many factory farm animals are abused and neglected in such ways that, if witnessed by consumers, would not be accepted. Over 99% of the United State’s farm animals live on factory farms that use them for means of profit, many of them violating the Animal Welfare Act and other laws put in place to protect the humane treatment of animals (ASPCA). This abuse is not limited to any specific type of farm animal. Although different animals are used for different purposes, they all share a common suffering and a need for humane care.

Our nation’s industrial farming has become more than just feeding people; it has become a way for the food industry to make more money as human population continues to grow. Jonathan Safran Foer in his book Eating Animals, illustrates the effects factory farming has had on animals meant for human consumption. Furthermore, Foer asks many questions to the reader on what will it take for us to change our ways before we say enough is enough. The questions individuals need to be asking themselves are: how do we deal with the problem of factory farming, and what can people do to help solve these issues? Eric Schlosser in Fast Food Nation, also illustrates the animal abuse that goes unseen within the food industry as well as Bernard Rollin and Robert Desch in their article “Farm Factories”, both demonstrate what is wrong today with factory farming. Foer gives such examples of employees who work in slaughterhouses giving accounts of what goes on in the kill floors, and stories of employees who have witnessed thousands and thousands of cows going through the slaughter process alive (Animals 231). Namit Arora in the article “On Eating Animals”, as well as Michael Pollan in his book The Omnivore’s Dilemma, both address some of the issues that animals face once they hit the kill floor. The food industry has transformed not only how people eat, but also the negative effects our climate endures as a result of factory farming as illustrated by Anna Lappe in “The Climate Crisis at the End

Even though higher yields are met for demand and human consumption, factory farming is cruel to animals due to the fact animals are often subject to harsh living conditions, more susceptible to diseases and injuries and are treated inhumanely during the slaughtering process. Unfortunately, with an increase in human population worldwide, the strain on farmers to meet the demand increases as well. This in turn causes more animals to be subject to this cruelty.

Most of the animals under this condition will develop illnesses, abnormalities, go insane, or die before they make it to the slaughterhouse (Alfie, 2010). In the U.S., over 10 billion animals are raised and killed each year for food about 9 billion chickens, 250 million turkeys, 100 million pigs, 35 million cows. The vast majority of these are not raised on small family farms but, rather, in the major agricultural facilities called?factory farms, also known as Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). The idea of factory farming originated in the 1920s with the discovery of vitamins A and D. When mixed with feed; farm animals were capable of growing without sunlight or exercise, which enabled them to be raised more efficiently in barns throughout the year (Fieser, 2015). Factory farming is a form of capitalism. Capitalism is an economic system that is privately controlled by owners for profit and self-interest (Fieser, 2015). Many philosophers have proposed the principle of equal consideration of interests, in some form or other, as a primary moral value; but, we shall see in more element shortly, not many of them have documented that this principle applies to members of other species as well as to our own. (Singer, 1989). In today society the consumer is much more interested in knowing how the chickens are raised, what they?ve been eating

Over the last 10 years or so Americans have been at odds with themselves and other Americans regarding the treatment of food source animals. The term “factory farm” is being coined for method in which animals are being processed in the food system. I will be discussing what a factory farm is, who or what benefits from them, and finally at what cost? Factory Farms have become an institution in support of the American way life, regardless of what we think; they have advantages and disadvantages.

The effects of factory farming is not worth the damage that is done to the health of the environment, animals, and people. The idea of a factory farm is to produce meat at a faster pace, but the way these companies accomplish this task makes life a living hell for the animals. For example, “They’re often given so little space that they can’t even turn around or lie down comfortably. Egg-laying hens are kept in small cages, chickens and pigs are kept in jam-packed sheds, and cows are kept on crowded, filthy feedlots”(Factory). The animals on these farms have to experience constant fear and agony, especially since most factory farmed animals will be genetically manipulated to grow larger or to produce more milk or eggs than they naturally would, and suffer severe pain throughout their entire life(Factory). Animals, especially cows, are being abused not only physically, but mentally as well.. For example, “just within hours of birth, calves are taken away from

It is widely known that factory farms treat animals cruelly, hoarding animals in tight spaces where there is hardly any room for air and force feeding them pesticide infested grains. While it is common knowledge that most

The chickens are selectively bred and are given special drugs in the food and water to make the chickens grow incredibly fast. Because of the breeding and drugs, a lot of the chickens develop leg problems which make is sometimes impossible to walk and stand so they either can’t get to the food or they can’t reach the water. Also, because of the ammonia in the feces, the chickens often get the skin on their stomachs burnt because the ammonia is so strong and will just sear the feathers and skin. The ammonia is also in the air so it is hard to breath and just think of what is in the chicken that you eat on a daily basis. When the chickens turn 7 weeks old, they are transported to the slaughter house and are hung by their feet and on conveyer belts and they go past a blade that is supposed to slit the chickens throat while conscious which is incredibly painful but sometimes it misses so the chicken is thrown into boiling water alive and usually drowns while getting burnt. After that, the bodies are striped and beheaded and are cut up to be eaten.

In fact, whether an animal can suffer or not has been a repetitious question since the factory farming industry has initiated and evolved. In the book Animal Liberation, written by Peter Singer, he asks the same question to the reader: “The question is not ‘Can they reason?’ nor ‘Can they talk?’ but ‘Can they suffer?” There is no right or wrong answer to this question, but there is capacity to understand where one might agree with Singer and his thought that animals can suffer. Prejudice is morally unacceptable, whether it is based on

Factory farms have abused these animals in way that is so horrific, it is not often revealed to the public what really goes on inside these “farms.” Animals such as chickens are shoved together into battery cages to the point where they are unable to move. Their beaks are cut off without anesthesia, and they are propelled with antibiotics and excessively fed for the purpose of making their breasts larger quickly. The excessive feeding makes their bodies grow unnaturally and disproportionally – causing heart failure, respiratory troubles, chronic pain, and leg weakness; after a hen’s egg production reduces at a certain age, the bird will be shocked into its final laying cycle and then be sent to slaughter to be used as food scraps – if they are not already killed on-farm. As for mother pigs, they spend up to four months in gestation crates with only limited mobility during their pregnancy. "Her piglets are

Does the economic benefits of factory farming outweigh the disadvantages? Our lives are so closely linked to these farm animals, what makes them so different from our cats and dogs? We care much of our pets, but when it comes to the term ”factory farm”, little do we know about the production process of factory farm and the truth behind the scene. There are some ways that the producer can make sacrifice and still achieve increased profit. The economic benefit of factory farm does not necessary outweigh the disadvantages. It’s time we should boycott factory farm, not just for the welfare of animals, but also for our own sake.

Have you ever wondered what you’re really eating, where the ground beef in your cheeseburger comes from, or if the animals are getting the same satisfaction and happiness that your hunger gets? Factory farming is the reason for these questions we ask ourselves. They say we should eat animal products that trace back to factory farms because they wouldn’t raise anything that’s not good for us in a “farm”. I say that you shouldn’t eat animal products from factory farms because of the corrupted conditions animals live in. They might object that factory farms is a better choice because you get more bang for your buck versus going to a farmers market and spending an arm and a leg for naturally raised produce.