Outside the Box

Just the Facts: Animal Cruelty

Posted by Nick Reitz On July - 5 - 2009

Just the Facts: The Meatrix

If you haven’t had the time to watch “The Meatrix” by following the link above ( or going to http://www.themeatrix1.com/ ), then please do so now. It’s an extremely interesting, funny, and informational animation about how industralized our food and milk industry has become. Here are a few facts that I found on their website (which can be found by clicking here).

Antibiotics
Because of the crowded and unsanitary conditions on factory farms, animals are often fed low doses of antibiotics. Antibiotics are also used to make the animals grow faster. This is contributing to the growing problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in humans.

Dairy
Dairy foods production is a multi-billion dollar industry, and over the past century it has grown increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few major corporations. This has lead to widespread environmental damage, low standards of animal welfare, and mass production of milk tainted with antibiotics, artificial growth hormones and pesticide residues.

Factory Farming
Meat and dairy production in the United States has changed dramatically over the past 30 years. Small family farms have been replaced by huge livestock facilities, where animals suffer horribly, workers are mistreated, the environment is being destroyed, and where rural communities are falling apart.

Feed
Animals on industrial farms are fed the cheapest grains and waste products in order to fatten them quickly. This leads to widespread health problems, so low doses of antibiotics are also added to the feed. The result is unhealthy animals and unhealthy food for consumers.

Food Safety
The significant corporate consolidation of global food production has created a food system that values quantity over quality. Every single decision a farmer, or corporation, makes about growing or raising a certain kind of food affects the final product. Cutting corners on the quality of animal feed, waste management, level of training for farm workers, processing methods and distribution all contribute to the safety of our food.

Health
Sustainable foods are healthier than industrial food because of higher levels of “good” fats and nutrients in grass-fed animal products and lower pesticide residues in organic foods. Meanwhile, industrially-produced food is detrimental to our health because it leads to outbreaks of foodborne illness, contributes to antibiotic resistance, and pollutes drinking water.

Hormones
Artificial hormones are implanted in beef and dairy cattle to make them grow faster and produce more milk. The US government claims the hormones are safe, but the European Union has banned hormones because of a possible link between hormones and some types of cancer.

Pesticides
Pesticides are sprayed on crops that are fed to farm animals. Residues are stored in the animals’ fat and tissue, and enter our bodies when we eat the meat. Pesticides have been linked to many medical problems.

Slaughterhouses and Processing
The US meatpacking industry is dominated by a handful of corporations that process massive quantities of meat in huge plants. As a result of inadequate food safety standards and lax inspection practices by the USDA, these corporations are able to operate unsanitary facilities and send out meat contaminated with dangerous bacteria. These facilities are also extremely dangerous, and meat-packing is among the most hazardous jobs in the nation.

Waste
Some industrial livestock facilities produce as much sewage as a small city, but they are not required to treat all this waste. Instead, the waste is held in large pools and spread on farm fields where it often runs off into nearby water systems.

Water Pollution
The waste from industrial farms leaks into streams, lakes, oceans and ground water with bacteria, antibiotic residue, pesticides and chemical fertilizer. This pollution can lead to the destruction of aquatic ecosystems and contamination of human drinking water.