The Truth About Factory Farming. *Graphic description*

[cluckmecoop7]

That's terrible!

 

[silvermouse387]

I agree that it is horrendous. However, I have some other points I'd like to raise.
One is the food aspect and the other is the large scale production.

As for the feed - "and fed a unhealthy diet to "force" them to lay an egg everyday."
The diet doesn't force them to lay an egg a day and it isn't unhealthy.
They lay an egg every day because they have been genetically selected to do so for hundreds of years - long before there was such a thing as 'factory farming'. The feed is more nutritious and healthy than the majority of what backyard chicken keepers feed.
All the broiler and egg operations as well as the turkey and swine operations have their own feed mills and not only do they make the most nutritious feed possible for the age and purpose of the animal but it is also fed the day it is made, unlike the rest of us that are feeding stuff made 3, 4 or more months earlier and is unhealthy because it has lost many of the nutrients in the original milling. And many small holders don't have the nutritional acumen to feed their animals exactly what they need.
It makes no economic sense for large scale poultry operations to feed unhealthy diets.
Every cent they gain per bird on millions of birds means big money. An unhealthy diet means they will lose money on every bird.

The other thing I would like to address is the need (as much as I hate it) for large scale meat and egg production.
In 1790, ninety percent of Americans lived on farms and ranches. By 1920, more Americans lived in cities than on farms for the first time in our history. In the 50 year period from 1870 to 1920, 11 million Americans migrated from rural to urban settings. During the same period, 25 million immigrants came here and the majority of them moved to cities. Today, only 2% of Americans live on farms or ranches. The same trend has been going on globally for a few centuries.
My question is, who is going to feed the other 98% of the humans on the planet who can't feed themselves. The solution has been the 'factory farm'. As immoral as it may be, the truth is that most people want and buy the cheapest food possible. Hence, large scale production. The need to undercut other producers on price means they pack more animals into even smaller space. If Americans demanded more humane treatment of livestock - as they have done in Europe - things will improve. However, do you really think that all the people who are at Walmart buying the cheapest meat and eggs they can find really care? People shopping for food are impressed by the nice Styrofoam packaging with the clear plastic covering and gassed with carbon monoxide to prevent the red meat from turning brown. No matter how old it is, it will stay red because there is no oxygen in the package. There are no pictures of the tightly packed animals on the package. It has gotten to the point that some people don't even know that meat comes from butchered animal. A nurse friend of the family never considered that eggs came from chickens. She wouldn't eat my eggs because she saw my chickens. She would only eat store eggs because she didn't draw the connection to cage hens. I offered to explain how they were raised and she wouldn't listen.
The bulk of the population doesn't have the space, knowledge nor desire to learn how to raise their own food.
The main problem as I see it is human overpopulation.

Here is a good read on the reason for and timeline of the transition from agrarian to industrial societies around the world.
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/...nt_store/Sample_Chapter/9780745623450/001.pdf

"That is why I encourage you raise as much of your own food as possible."
I teach classes on poultry and state that for each backyard bird, there is the need for one less caged hen.

This is a very valuable information. I totally agree with every word that you wrote. I think people, especially us need to read and understand about this.