Blog #9. What is Factory Farming?

 FACT: The more milk an animal produces or the quicker it reaches slaughter weight, the more profitable the operation is. Growth hormones are administered to about two-thirds of all beef cattle in the US, and to roughly twenty-two percent of dairy cows in order to boost milk production. 

  

    The fact that growth hormones and antibiotics are frequently given to farmed animals surprises a lot of people. Human health and the well-being of animals are among the challenges that are at hand.

Animals in factory farms cannot afford to be cared for either individually or as a whole. The animals are just a product, and in order to increase the operation's profitability, growth hormones like rGBH and antibiotics are used.

FACT: Hormone use in beef cattle is prohibited by the European Union, and a study revealed that hormone residues are still present in the meat. Japan, Canada, Australia, and the European Union have all outlawed the use of rBGH due to health concerns pertaining to humans and animals; however, the hormone is still administered to cows in the US. The EU does not import any beef from the US because it has outlawed the importation of meat from animals that have received hormone therapy.

Cows and other farm animals receive regular doses of antibiotics as a preventive measure to fight mastitis and other illnesses. It would be too expensive to diagnose and treat individual animals in a herd or flock, so if one is found to be ill, the medication is usually given to the entire herd and mixed in with their feed or water.

Antibiotics administered to animals in low dosages that result in weight gain raise additional concerns. The reason behind the weight gain in animals from minimal amounts of antibiotics is unclear, but the practice is legal in the US but prohibited in the EU and Canada.

This indicates that healthy cows are receiving antibiotics when they don't require them, creating a further risk to their health.

Overuse of antibiotics is problematic because it leads to the growth of bacterial strains that are resistant to them. Antibiotics kill most bacteria, leaving behind resistant individuals that reproduce more quickly because there is less competition from other bacteria. Those who come into exposure to the animals or animal products on the farm may contract these bacteria, which can then spread throughout the entire farm.

This is not an unfounded concern. Salmonella strains resistant to antibiotics have already been discovered in animal products used in human food supplies.

Doris Lin, Factory Farmed Animals and Antibiotics and Hormones, Treehuggers, September 23, 2018, https://www.treehugger.com/factory-farmed-animals-antibiotics-and-hormones-127697