The High Cost Of Cheap Meat

The New York Times:

The point of factory farming is cheap meat, made possible by confining large numbers of animals in small spaces. Perhaps the greatest hidden cost is its potential effect on human health.

Read the whole story

Comments

[freefromharm]

10:54 AM on 06/08/2011

Lots of snarly comments here. How about ditching your cynicism for a moment and focus on an organization that is really doing something good for people, animals and the environment? See http://freefromharm.org/farm-animal-welfare/farm-to-fridge-movie-tour-exposes-millions-to-factory-farm-cruelty/.

[Pennsanic]

02:55 PM on 06/06/2011

If you have a few minutes, it's worth reading this:

Swine of the times:
The making of the modern pig
By Nathanael Johnson

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2006/05/0081030

It made me start asking questions of my local butcher about where their pork comes from...

[crom14]

08:20 AM on 06/06/2011

I am always shocked when people state "Oh, I love animals". "I love dogs". " Then they go and eat animals."

[dropthedh]

02:02 PM on 06/06/2011

They merely left out the words, "how they taste."

[elcerritan]

02:14 PM on 06/06/2011

I love trees and flowers, too, but I also eat plants.

[crom14]

09:46 PM on 06/07/2011

I do not enjoy eating another beings blood.

[stape45]

02:31 PM on 06/05/2011

And the GOP wants to run the entire country like a business, huh? That's only good for the business, but to them, that's all that matters.

[Pleroma]

03:34 PM on 06/05/2011

Deep.

[thrugreeneyez]

04:01 PM on 06/04/2011

Yet another reason to boycott factory farms and quit eating meat and dairy.

[TomP100]

04:42 PM on 06/04/2011

Or obtain humanely-rasied, organic meat and dairy. Thanks for providing a false dichotomy.

[Atari]

06:40 PM on 06/04/2011

So you and everyone else in America is going to stop going to restaurants and fast food places because they don't serve humanely raised meat right? When you're hungry you're going to go home turn on the stove and cook every meal yourself, right?

[saskatoonie]

03:32 PM on 06/05/2011

Meat and dairy are the backbone of many good family farms!

[Pleroma]

03:40 PM on 06/05/2011

Backbone Soup! You're making me hungry.

[frank day]

11:14 AM on 06/04/2011

If the suffering of animals doesn't get you, perhaps your own

suffering will convince you to go vegetarian.

[thrugreeneyez]

04:02 PM on 06/04/2011

Hi Frank, well said! I fanned you!

[TomP100]

04:43 PM on 06/04/2011

Of course, there are also many omnivores that eat well and are in fantastic health. But don't let facts keep you from proselytizing.

[Atari]

05:15 PM on 06/04/2011

Sure until you get cancer.
"In contrast, Harvard studies showed that daily meat eaters have approximately three times the colon cancer risk, compared to those who rarely eat meat."
http://www.cancerproject.org/survival/cancer_facts/meat.php

[DSOTM]

11:08 AM on 06/04/2011

The US Food industry will one day be responsible for the biggest mass-murder in US history.

Its not about "If" it will happen, its only about "when" it happens.

So far most cases of food-borne contamination has been limited to small numbers per outbreak, but we will eventually have an outbreak of a deadly virus or bacteria that will leave 1000's dead and the food industry in shambles.

[Vladdycat]

06:21 AM on 06/05/2011

Meat, the other cigarette.

[jumbotron16]

03:07 PM on 06/05/2011

Huh?