Industrial agriculture is constantly a danger to the environment as well as all those it seeks out to exploit. Industrial agriculture is a dangerous business that has many major players with dark and violent histories. The technologies used and the disregard for life also result in huge casualties.
The industrial agriculture system of today is designed to benefit a few industry leaders and at the expense of almost everyone else.
Abuse is a key characteristic of industrial agriculture. It is prevalent at all levels. Animal abuse is one the most obvious, despite it being hidden behind charming marketing materials and humane labels. These labels are generously distributed and provide insufficient guidelines. Manipulation of peopleIt is also common in this industry. Workers in slaughterhousesThey are often exposed to potentially fatal hazards and can develop debilitating mental disorders, such as PTSD. Field workers are the most vulnerable. oppressedof any American workers and are vulnerable to human traficking assaultFrom superiors and other horrors.
Here are four ways in which industrial agriculture harms the world and all living things.
1. Pesticide Toxicity
Crop dusting, a type of pesticide application, is what you’ve seen if you’ve ever seen small planes fly low over farmland. There are three main types of pesticides: herbicides to control plants, also known as weeds, insecticides and rodenticides to kill insects and animals, and fungicides to combat fungal and mold diseases. These are used in large-scale monocrop agriculture, where most of the pesticides are fed to factory-farmed livestock, which is then passed on to us.
Some pesticide corporations have terrible histories. Monsanto is one such company. Bayer merged with BayerIn 2018, we worked with the US government. Agent Orange is being developedAgent Orange was used as an experimental form chemical and biological warfare in the Vietnam War. Three generations after Agent Orange was widely used, congenital malformations continue to be a problem in Vietnam.
Monsantos Roundup herbicide has the highest usage currently pesticideIn the United States and probably around the globe. Its main ingredient, GlyphosateBayer has been accused by a number of lawsuits of causing autism, cancer and other chronic illnesses. Bayer has been ordered by a series of new lawsuits to pay out Billions of dollarsIn damages to people who have been diagnosed with cancers like non-Hodgkin lymphoma. This could be the beginning of such lawsuits.
2. Water Pollution
Water pollution due to industrial agriculture is known. Point-source pollutionIt comes from one source. Point-source pollution can only be considered for large-scale agricultural operations. Pesticide or fertilizer runoff, as well as waste from CAFOs (including land-based operations), are all examples of industrial agricultural water pollution. Fish farms. Water pollution can have an impact on the environment, groundwater, larger ecosystems, and even our atmosphere.
2016 was the Waterkeeper Alliance, Environmental Working GroupNorth Carolina Riverkeeper Organizations Data releasedCAFOs in North Carolina were where, in certain areas of the state, pigs outnumbered human beings 40 to 1. These facilities produce huge amounts of waste. They often collect it into large, open-air waste lagoons that are then sometimes used to fertilize crops. This practice has been linked with the development of chronic, deadly conditions in nearby residents. Groundwater and stream contamination also pose serious risks from waste lagoons, which can lead to elevated levels in ammonia, nitrates, and can be fatal for fish and dangerous to humans.
Low-income communities of color have higher concentrations of CAFOs, particularly those that are hog farms. They also tend to have other points of pollution like coal plants and trash incinerators. This is a form environmental racismThese corporations deploy these people because they believe these communities have less resources and political power to resist these harmful impacts. These communities are often less economically able and have fewer opportunities for employment.
3. Antibiotic Resistance
Animals forced to live in CAFOs are often subject to chronic stress and other debilitating diseases. Animals can lose their natural behavior and even feel the sun on them or their feathers. This can lead to a loss of immunity. All manner of pathogens thrive in the filthy conditions found at CAFOs. It is difficult to believe that animals can survive in these conditions. This can be attributed in large part to antibiotics. These drugs are often used for the entire life of an animal, especially in chickens or pigs that have to endure extreme confinement such as battery cages or gestation crates. These cages limit chickens’ ability to spread their wings and pigs are unable to turn around.
Animal stomachs don’t fully digest antibiotics. As high as 90%Their waste can be used to fertilize crops. This is how drug-resistant bacteria comes in contact with humans.
Antibiotic resistance is a global pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO), raised the alarm in 2019 with a ReportAround 700,000 people are killed each year by drug-resistant diseases. This number could rise to 10 million by 2050 and 24 million people will be forced into poverty by 2050.
The WHO has many recommendations for human and animal health. However, it fails to mention the most effective option: plant-based diets. It is crucial to ask the question: Is one of the The greatest threats to our global communityIs it worth eating animals?
4. Dangerous Consolidation Of The Agricultural Sector
Animal abuse in animal agriculture at any scale is inevitable, but it is not impossible to see that bigger is better. Family members who are familiar with the land and animals often run smaller operations. This is a marked difference from industrial agricultural monocrops or CAFOs which can be managed largely by outsiders. Remote control.
There are a few key factors that have led to the decline of US mid-sized farms. Multinational corporations often own industrial agriculture corporations. This allows them to set prices that are not based on actual production costs or supply and demand. They then overproduce, which lowers prices and squeezes out smaller businesses that have very low margins. They soon become the only player in town, thanks to their political influence, which includes lobbying efforts to pass legislation favorable for industrial players and extremely low interest rates on loans to grow their operations.
It’s a matter of family farms versus multinational companies. The corporations are winning in the US.