Facts from Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer

(Apologies for the lateness of this post. It was posted last night, but was mysteriously replaced with a post by Conor.)

In Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals, the author explores many elements of animal welfare, particularly factory farming and big business fishing. Throughout the novel, he describes, in detail, the conditions in both the catching of marine life for human consumption and the slaughter of animals in the meatpacking industries. Foer begins each of his chapters with an interesting fact about animal welfare, which are listed as follows:

• "Americans choose to eat less than .25% of the known edible food on the planet" (1).
• "Modern industrial fishing lines can be as long as 75 miles--the same distance as from sea level to space" (19).
• "Animal agriculture makes a 40% greater contribution to global warming than all transportation in the world combined; it is the number one cause of climate change" (43).
• "In the typical cage for egg-laying hens, each bird has 67 square inches of space--the size of this rectangle [the size of the page]. Nearly all cage-free birds have approximately the same amount of space" (79).
• "On average, Americans eat the equivalent of 21,000 entire animals in a lifetime--one animal for every letter on the last five pages" (121).
• "Nearly one-third of the land surface of the planet is dedicated to livestock" (149).
• "Less than 1% of the animals killed for meat in America come from family farms" (201).
• "Where will it end?" (245).

Foer makes convincing arguments with sufficient arguments from beginning to end, making his novel a valid source for study on the topic of animal welfare. He presents it in a way where he supports his accusations, yet uses humor to lighten the mood of seriousness that looms over his work. It was a very interesting and informative read that I  suggest to everyone, even those who did not have animal welfare as their blog topic. Sound off in the comments.

Citation Info:
Foer, Jonathan Safran. Eating Animals. 2nd. 1st. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company, 2009. 1-273. Print.

-DR

The Jungle: Weekly Excerpt

Week of March 21, 2011:
"In a society dominated by the fact of commercial competition, money is necessarily the test of prowess, and wastefulness the sole criterion of power."
This quote from The Jungle describes the change in society due to the rise of the meatpacking industry, the emergence of commercial competition, the act of running fellow companies out of business, and the growing importance of money. The food industry continued to grow in power and influence at an uncomfortable rate, reaching the powerful position it holds today. It is all about who is richer and who holds the most power. Sound off in the comments.

-DR

Underwater Factory Farming...? "Eating Animals" by Jonathan Foer

When I started this book, I expected it to be a book about the typical abuses of a typical farm animal e.g. the pig, cow, chicken. What I wasn't expecting was to here about was aquaculture, which Foer defines as, "the intensive rearing of sea animals in confinement...essentially underwater factory farming" (Foer 189). Our society doesn't usually group tuna and salmon as those suffering abuse due to our food industry, but Foer spends a lot of his book talking about this issue. Foer cites several sources of suffering for salmon and other sea creatures on page 189-190:

1) Water so fouled that it makes it hard to breathe; 2)crowding so intense that animals begin to cannibalize one another; 3)handling so invasive that physiological measures of stress are evident a day later; 4) disturbance by farm workers and wild animals; 5)nutritional deficiencies that weaken the immune system; 6) the inability to form a stable social hierarchy, resulting in more cannibalization...A major source of suffering for salmon and other farmed fish is the abundant presence of sea lice...These lice create open lesions and sometimes eat down to teh bones on a fish's face.

Who dares to say that this isn't just as cruel, if not more cruel, then what the other "typical" animals face in their factories? All of these animals face very cruel suffering, suffering that we really should not turn our backs on any longer. Foer brings light to these misdeeds created by the meat industry. Our society really can't turn our backs any longer. Otherwise we could face dreadful consequences.

-KW

Yes, there are two types of chicken..."Eating Animals" by Jonathan Foer

Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer is well worth your time. It is an incredibly interesting book which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. In my next two posts, I just wanted to talk about certain passages that really stuck out in my mind and made me think a lot.

The first passage I want to talk about is on page 47 of the book published by the company Back Bay Books. (Mrs. Collier: I believed you read this passage to us in class, but I wanted to bring it up again. I think it's so interesting and well worth blogging about.) This passage talks about the awful living conditions of the egg-laying hen (not to be confused with the broiler chicken. Fun Fact: Yes there are indeed two types of chicken. For more information see the bottom of the post.) Here is the passage: 

The typical page for egg-laying hens allows each sixty-seven square inches of floor spaces-somewhere between the size of this page and a sheet of printer paper. Such cages are stacked between three and nine tiers high...Step your mind into a crowded elevator...so crowded that you are often held aloft. This is kind of a blessing, as the slanted floor is made of wire, which cuts your feet...There is no respite, no relief...The doors will open once, at the end of your life, for your journey to the only place worse (Foer 47). 

These are obviously awful and disgusting conditions. Foer goes on to talk about how some of these chickens go mad and become violent or cannibalistic. Is that really how we should treat animals? I think Foer makes it clear that this book isn't about promoting vegetarianism, but it obviously does question your morals. Throughout the book, Foer also kind of mocks the idea that humans are the center of the universe and how we compare everything to us. (Also known as the theory anthropocentrism).

On a different topic, I mentioned above that there are two types of chicken. Foer discusses them on page 48 and talks about how they have different genetics and bodies. These are the two types of chicken:
1. The one we already discussed: layers
2. The other type: broilers. Broilers are chicken that become meat. Broilers are now being genetically modified to grow more than twice as large in half the time. They once had a life expectancy of about 15 or 20 years but not they are killed at around 6 weeks.

Now, Foer then goes on to discuss, what happens to the male off spring of layers? Because obviously they don't serve the function of producing eggs or becoming meat. So what happens to them?

Most male layers are destroyed by being sucked through a series of pipes onto an electrified plate...Some are tossed into large plastic containers. The weak are trampled to the bottom, where they suffocate slowly. The strong suffocate slowly at the top. Others are sent fully conscious through macerators (picture a wood chipper filled with chicks) (48-49). 

Well I suppose this sounds a wee bit cruel...but maybe that's just me.

-KW

An interesting argument...

The following link will take you to... a page that is written by the manager of communications for an entity which calls itself the Animal Agricultural Alliance.


http://www.animalagalliance.org/images/ag_insert/manurematters_may03_page18.pdf


SPOILER ALERT: It defends factory farming.


In case you were too lazy to read it, it has a few... ahem... interesting quotes. Here are a few:

"Too far removed from the reality of how our 

food is produced, consumers have bought into the 

factory farming myth, believing the family farm has 

disappeared. The fact is that of the over two million 

farms and ranches in the U.S. today, 99% are still 

owned and operated by families. "

The same could be said of the Mafia. Regardless of who is owning them, the difference between the modern factory farm and the idyllic family farm of days past is simple: treatment of animals. Of course, they would be killed eventually, but they were not meant to suffer as extraordinarily as they are today.

"One of the reoccurring themes in the campaign to 

end intensive poultry and livestock production is the 

issue of waste management on “factory farms”. With 

hugely exaggerated, inflammatory, and graphic lan- 

guage, activists have tied current on-farm practices to 

the ultimate destruction of the global environment."

Regardless of the environment (which factory farming certainly isn't helping), the article seems to portray industry as 'the victim' here, practically stating that it is being viciously attacked by loud groups of hippies determined to smash American commerce forever. The whole time, however, the article fails to address the fact that the animals are no longer treated even somewhat humanely. Until industry puts morals above money (or, as I stated in a previous post, consumers demonstrate that they care about animal welfare), the food industry can not pretend to be 'the victim' in any circumstance.

Factory animals, however, can.

-Conor

Reply to Dan's Post on "Eating Animals Fun Facts" which has been reposted further up

Primarily addressing your last quote ("Where will it end?"), I think that because this problem was born from the Almighty Dollar, it will have to be capitalism to undo it, as it seems to be the only way. It would be much easier, though, if organic, humanely prepared food was as cheap as the 'bad stuff', but that seems to be a long way off. Able consumers, however, should show these companies that they want organic and animal-friendly (or, as animal-friendly as meat-eaters can be!) not just by their words, but by their money. As the Wal-Mart executive from Food, Inc. stated, it's all about where money can be made. As a side note, not only is the food better to the animals, but it also tastes better. (Have you had a grass-fed, organic steak before?)

-Conor

Break from the Frequent Flow of Books Reviews

Hey everybody! Now we know everyone is freaking about reviewing the blog books and everything, but if you are in need of a break, why not vote on our poll? At the bottom of our blog, below all our posts, is a poll asking the question "Does the Public Deserve to Know Everything that Occurs in the Animal Factories?" Voting ends March 23rd at 11:59 PM. Don't forget to vote!

Reflection on "Eating Animals"

Jonathan Safran Foer's nonfiction work Eating Animals offers a shocking and brutally honest look into the repulsive world of modern livestock-raising. He notes horrifying details such as the massively disproportionate ratios of actual animals killed to edible food product (such as how many cows go into a single burger), as well as many disgusting truths regarding the treatment of factory farm animals, telling how they can be treated beyond inhumanely by means of harming them by mutilating and skinning them alive with no methods to dull their pain. In addition, Foer notes the regrettable side-effects of the genetic modification of animals to get more meat off of them, like the animals' extreme lack of fitness and recurring pain. While the book was often painful to read (I will never be able to eat McDonald's, etc., again without thinking of it),  and told me things that I simply didn't really want to know, it did give me a greater awareness of the evils of factory farms, and a greater appreciation for humane and organic farming.

-Conor

Thoughts on "Eating Animals"

I found this book to be written in a very interesting way. Jonathan Safran Foer is a vegan, but in this book, he does not try to convince the reader to become a vegan, as I had previously expected. He merely points out all the ethical wrongdoings of factory farms. He points out the brutality with which the animals are treated and gives the reader interesting facts that would make anyone feel sick about what is being done. For instance, some chickens have been genetically modefied so much, that they are constantly born with chronic pains. Reading this made me really angry. However, he also points out how some farms treat their animals humanely and with respect. There is even a turkey farmer who apologizes to his turkies for slaughtering them. This book was great and opened my eyes to the evils of factory farms. I highly recommend it for people who want to know how their food is REALLY made.

-David

Taco Bull...again.

I'm sure many of you have seen Taco Bell's many attempts to fix all that is left over of their damaged image as the result of the lawsuit over their "beef" (For more information, see our previous blog post called "Taco Bull"). Recently many people have been talking about their new commercial in which their workers insist that their beef is indeed real and delicious. If you haven't seen it, watch it below:

Also, here is an article from AOL news of different people's reactions to the commercial: http://www.thatsfit.com/2011/03/18/do-you-believe-taco-bell-is-real-meat/?icid=maing%7Cmain5%7Cdl10%7Csec3_lnk2%7C50647 Some of them don't seem that convinced...I don't blame them. But what do you think? Is this good enough to convince their customers that the meat is okay? Does it convince you? I don't know about you, but I still have my doubts....only 35% beef. Come on, people. That's disgusting.

-KW

If slaughterhouses had glass walls...

If slaughterhouses had glass walls...would the meat industry be thriving as it does? Would the American people continue to ignore the gruesome and inhumane treatment of the animals that occur behinds those walls?

It's disgusting how these animals are treated in these slaughterhouses. Sure, they are about to die anyway, but that's like saying that it's okay to strangle someone as they are bleeding to death. These animals know what's happening as they approach their deaths, they can hear and smell their fellow victims. Another misconception is that the animals are technically dead or unconcious before they are actually slaughtered and sliced to bits. This is often not true. Many animals survive the stunning or electrocution and deal with horrible pain as their body is sliced to bits. Gail Eisnitz describes these horrors in her book, Slaughterhouse.



Pigs hangon on a bleed rail



It was a plant where squealing hogs were left straddling the restrainer and dangling live by one leg when workers left the stick pit for their half-hour lunch breaks; where stunners were shocking hogs three and four times; where inadequately stunned hogs were jumping from the shackling table into the blood pit below, smashing into metal pipes on the trip down and fracturing legs and backs; where, whether broken or not, thousands of squealing hogs were immersed in the plant’s scalding tank alive.

Another issue in the slaughterhouse is that workers are well aware of the pain they are causing the animals. As a matter of fact, they are often the person who is inducing pain. They are often rushed to keep the level of production up to scratch and therefore take their frustrations out on these suffering animals.

And the worst part is, USDA FSIS, who is responsible for upholding the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, rarely does anything. They often send out inspectors and vets to the slaughterhouses but violations are rarely reported. Instead, we find out about these violations and abuses in undercover videos or books.

Here is a link for more information: http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/slaughterhouses.html

-KW

The Jungle: Weekly Excerpt

Week of March 14, 2011
"When people are starving and they have anything with a price, I guess you ought to sell it, I say. I guess you realize it now when it's too late."

This quote really helps to explain how the meat-packing industry has arrived at its current state. People were starving, and they would sell and buy anything if they were desperate enough. This desperation drove big food industries to advance the production of meat and lead to the success of the meat-packing industries. This evolution of the industry lead to a change in the times, the survival of the people; however, now people look at the meat packing industry as a cruel, negative business due to the poor treatment of the animals. This is where the second part of the quote comes in. Sinclaire claims that it's too late to change things, but it's never too late. People can change things; it's just a matter of how. Sound off in the comments.

-DR

Farm Sanctuary! Great Site

Hey everyone, great site that everyone has to check out! It's called Farm Sanctuary and it provides a virtual experience that everyone can enjoy, especially those interested in animal welfare. The simulation allows one to get detailed descriptions of various, individual animals, including their biographies and what they have gone through in their lives. This site provides an engrossing experience that helps one understand the current animal welfare situation just a little bit better. Both the Factory Farm and the Sanctuary can be viewed in the interactive activity. But be warned: there are graphic images and videos that you may not want to observe if you are faint of heart.

Make Love, Not Chemically Processed Meat wants to give a HUGE shoutout and thank you to Alison Denzer-King, who was generous enough to let us know about this site. Everybody who sees her give her a super thank you, even if you are not part of this blog. She was a super great help!

Also, here is the link: http://action.farmsanctuary.org/site/PageServer?pagename=VirtualExperience

-DR

Animal Abuse in Fatory Farming

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT. MAY DISTURB SOME VIEWERS
http://www.animalfreedom.org/english/information/abuses.html  

This website shows how terribly some animals are treated by the meat packing industry. It is truly shocking how inhumane these animals are treated. It is important that people are shown these horrors so they can stand up to them.

-David

The Jungle: Weekly Excerpt

Week of March 7, 2011:
"The line of the buildings stood clear-cut and black against the sky; here and there out of the mass rose the great chimneys, with the river of smoke streaming away to the end of the world."

This quote from The Jungle illustrates the introduction of the meat-packing industry into an urban environment, looming over the cityscape and creating an ominous atmosphere in the community that previously lacked the dominating industry of the meat-packing plants. The great chimneys of the plant spewed the dark smoke of the processed animals into the sky. The end of the world symbolizes just how vast the spread of pollution was and the influence of the meat-packing industry. How can we combat the seemingly-unbeatable influence of the food industry? Sound off in the comments below.

 

DR

Animal Welfare Approved

Hey everyone just found a great new site (that has also been recently added to our sites section at the bottom of this blog). It is called "Animal Welfare Approved," and it has great articles and news for not just us, but also fellow bloggers. You will want to spread the word about this site because it has material that can be used by all groups that are blogging. Citing the opening paragraph on the site,"The Animal Welfare Approved program audits and certifies family farms raising their animals humanely, outdoors on pasture or range. Farmers who earn the AWA seal benefit from having a third-party verification of their high-welfare practices and consumers benefit by knowing that the humane label means what it says." This site is a great location to find the latest news on the food industry as a whole. Expect to find more blog posts from "Make Love, Not Chemically Processed Meat" supported by "Animal Welfare Approved."

And just for everyone's benefit, here is the link: http://www.animalwelfareapproved.org/

Happy blogging everyone!

DR

Animal Cloning and Its Many Issues

In 2008, the FDA approved the sale of cloned animal products and their offspring, making the move from the lab to the grocery store, despite great opposition from the general American public. They decided that these products don't need labels either, which shows just another way that the FDA is hiding the truth of the food industry from the American public. Many animal welfare groups and consumer advocacy groups, as well as Congress and the dairy industry, greatly opposed this move by the FDA. You may ask, why was there such great opposition? Well, first of all, there is a huge health risk in animal cloning products, both for their animals and the consumers. Animal cloning causes severe animal suffering, much to the chagrin of various animal welfare groups. Another issue is that the American public in general does not want these products on grocery store shelves. Many have moral and ethical issues with it; they think that it is not natural and is against God's plan for animals. 90% of American adults want the government to look into these ethical issues and make them known to the public before these products are sold.

So there are obviously issues with animal cloning in the industry. We will have to see how the government handles these issues, or if they ever do...

For more information on the fight against animal cloning, visit the website below:
http://www.endanimalcloning.org/index.shtml

-Kate

The Jungle: Weekly Excerpt

Week of February 28, 2011:
"This is no fairy story and no joke; the meat will be shoveled into carts and the man who did the shoveling will not trouble to lift out a rat even when he saw one."

This quote from The Jungle helps illustrate how the food industry changed during the early 20th century (the time that the novel was written by Upton Sinclair). The horrible conditions and practices were so awful, one might consider them a cruel fairy tale or story; however, the reality of the situation was far from fantasy, for the mass slaughter of animals for human consumption had begun, ushering in an age of greed and gluttony. Why has the neglect of the welfare of what people consume continued for over a century? Why do Americans ignore the fact that what they are eating is not healthy to them or the animals? Sound off in the comments!

DR

In the World of Animal Welfare: Disputes in Arizona

Hello readers! Some interesting animal welfare news has surfaced concerning the conditions and treatment of animals in the factory-farms. Please read ahead for more information.

Although the Humane Society works to combat the mistreatment of animals all over the world, it is currently hard at work in Arizona, fighting against the factory-farms that have the horrible conditions shown in the documentary Food Inc. The main dispute is, of course, over the treatment of animals in relation to the price of food for consumers. Should we continue the horrible practices of the food industry to keep food costs low, or should we treat the animals well and make them content but raise the price of groceries? It is a very difficult situation, but the Humane Society is working hard to protect the animals while the farmers are working hard to protect their business. In this fight, there are truly no winners, but in my opinion, let's hope the animals come out on top. Sound off in the comments.

And just for your benefit, here is the original link: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2011/01/27/20110127arizona-farmers-animal-rights-fight-with-humane-society.html

DR

THE JUNGLE: Weekly Excerpt

Introducing a new blog feature on "Make Love, Not Chemically Processed Meat"
From now on, we will post a weekly excerpt from Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, a novel from the early twentieth century that informed society about the cruelties that take place amongst the working class, specifically in the meat-packing industry. Enjoy!

Week of February 21, 2011:
"They use everything about the hog except the squeal"

This quote informs the audience about the meatpacking industry using every part of the animal for the food, minus the squeal, a possible symbol for the pig's life and soul, which the industry would probably use if they could. This practice of using everything the pig has continues today, raising serious questions about the treatment of animals in these meatpacking plants. Sound off in the comments!

DR

Taco Bull?

So, I'm pretty sure that you have all heard about Taco Bell's "meat" scandal. If you haven't...here's the scoop: Recently, a group of lawyers filed a lawsuit against Taco Bell claiming that the Taco Bell "meat" actually only contains 35% meat. The lawyers' purpose for the lawsuit was to try to get Taco Bell to list all the ingredients of their "meat mixture" and to also call their meat a 'meat mixture' rather than ground beef. So the question remains, what exactly is in the other 65%? Well, to be accurate water, isolated oat product, salt, chili pepper, onion powder, tomato powder, oats, soy lecithin, sugar, spices, maltodextrin (CORN), soybean oil, garlic powder, autolyzed yeast extract, citric acid, caramel color, silicon dioxide, natural flavors, yeast, modified CORN starch, natural smoke flavor, more salt, and sodium phosphate...hmm...that sounds like a meat mixture to me. So what does Taco Bell do? They are offering all its customers free taco coupons. Hmm...won't those tacos contain that meat mixture that the whole world is talking about. Um...I'm not sure if I'll take you up on that offer, thanks though.

 Obviously, you can see why everyone is talking about this whole scandal now. Maybe Taco Bell will learn its lesson and in the future Make Love, Not Chemically Processed Meat.


And just an extra fun addition to the article, here's a link to a game poking fun at Taco Bell on addictinggames.com: http://www.addictinggames.com/tacobull.html

KW

Welcome, Koineecheewa, Valkommen, Salve, etc.

Welcome to "Make Love, Not Chemically Processed Meat" presented by The Cattle Kids of 7th period AP English. We (Kate, Dan, David, and Conor) are here to inform the public about the current state of animal welfare in both America and the rest of the world. This includes animal raising, treatment in factories, etc. We are here to provide reliable information on this topic, so that you may leave this blog with a better understanding of the food industry and its treatment towards animals. So remember...Make Love, Not Chemically Processed Meat!