Why are animals treated as a unit of production?
The modern, industrialized way in which we produce meat, dairy and other animal products has turned animals into units of production rather than being seen as sentient beings. Many animals raised for food or fiber are subject to inhumane treatment and living conditions.
Why are farm animals treated the same as factory animals?
By treating farm animals the same as workers treat equipment or machinery in a factory, farmers are able to raise and produce animals at extraordinary rates. Doing so makes it final product, clothing or food in most cases, significantly cheaper for the consumer.
What is the agribusiness industry doing about animal welfare?
Concern for the welfare of animals beyond pets brings us to the agribusiness industry. This is where groups such as the ASPCA and HSUS have been particularly active. Agribusiness is a huge industry that provides us with the food we eat, including plant-based and animal-based foodstuffs.
Does processing of animal products result in a price gain?
Not all processing of animal products results in a price gain. This page lists the profitability of processing animal products at different quality levels and Farming Professions . Note that regular chicken eggs always produce normal quality Mayonnaise and Large Eggs produce gold quality mayonnaise.
What is the most consistent factor affecting profit on a cow/calf operation?
Weaning Weight of Calves – Weaned calves are the main source of revenue for the beef operation, as such the more pounds available to sell, the more potential revenue is generated.
What factors influence the production of beef?
Production factors of farm scale, forage, concentrate, health, reproduction, labor, years of farming and agribusiness implementation were influence to the beef cattle production.
How can we increase beef production?
Increasing carcass weight, reducing age at slaughter, maintaining optimum heterosis, and using multi-trait selection indices for feeder cattle and fertile replacement heifers are management practices that have a large impact on the sustainability of beef production.
What are the seven critical management areas for a cow/calf producer?
7. Crossbreeding for the average cow-calf producer can result in a 10-30% increase in pounds of calf weaned per cow exposed in the breeding....Herd nutrition.pasture and range management.herd health.financial management.marketing.production management.genetics.
What are the factors that may affect animal productivity?
Numerous physical, biological and socio-economic factors interact to influence the nature and extent of animal agriculture practiced in any region. Climate, which includes both temperature and precipitation, can affect any animals' ability to survive and to be productive in many ways.
What are the three major factors affecting animal production?
Nutrition and Feeding. Breeding and Reproduction. Health and Disease. Economic Factor. Economic and Socio-economic. Environmental Factor. Housing and Environment: Comfort needs.
How can animal productivity be improved?
Avoid wastage on your farm and be resourceful to convert any animal waste into money. Such as selling poultry manure to food crop farmers, processing dead birds to feed fishes and/or use animal dungs to breed maggots and earthworms.
How do cattle farm for profit?
Top 10 Ways to Make Cow Herds More Profitable1 Don't buy average or inferior bulls. ... 2 Join a cattle marketing alliance. ... 3 Moderate cow size. ... 4 Treat your cows as an employee. ... 5 Cull cows. ... 6 Develop a short and defined breeding season. ... 7 Control feed expenses. ... 8 Utilize heterosis.More items...
How can we improve livestock production?
Feed animals less human food. Around 70% of the grains used by developed countries are fed to animals. ... Raise regionally appropriate animals. ... Keep animals healthy. ... Adopt smart supplements. ... Eat quality not quantity. ... Tailor practices to local culture. ... Track costs and benefits. ... Study best practice.
Is it profitable to raise beef cattle?
Beef cattle are generally the most profitable and easiest livestock to raise for profit. Beef cattle simply require good pasture, supplemental hay during the winter, fresh water, vaccinations and plenty of room to roam. You can buy calves from dairy farms inexpensively to start raising beef cattle.
Why is cattle production important?
Cattle production is the most important agricultural industry in the United States, consistently accounting for the largest share of total cash receipts for agricultural commodities.
What are the different operations involved in beef cattle production?
They are very adaptable to harsh climates. The beef production systems can be divided into 4 types of operations: cow-calf, backgrounder (also called 'stocker' or 'grower'), feedlot, and seedstock.
What are the factors influencing production?
There are four factors of production—land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship.
What are the factors affect supply?
Supply refers to the quantity of a good that the producer plans to sell in the market. Supply will be determined by factors such as price, the number of suppliers, the state of technology, government subsidies, weather conditions and the availability of workers to produce the good.
How did the breed revolution in beef cattle contribute to quality problems?
As new breeds were brought in, cattle feeding changed to accommodate the type of cattle the new breeds provided. How did the breed revolution in beef cattle contribute to quality problems? Maximum efficiency would be a 100% calf crop - one calf per year from each mature female cow in the herd.
What things affect meat prices?
There are many factors that influence livestock supply, including market changes, cost of inputs, weather and price of substitute goods. Change in market price can cause a short-term change in quantity; as prices increase, a farmer may move to bring more animals to market to capitalize on advantageous pricing.
What is the treatment of animals by everyone in the livestock chain?
Furthermore, the treatment of animals by everyone in the livestock chain (e.g., livestock farmers, dealers, fish farmers, animal transporters, slaughterhouses) must be appropriate for a society with high legal and ethical standards.
Why is animal research less negative?
The use of animals in biomedical research has drawn slightly less negative reaction than in consumer product testing, because of the more critical nature of the research. Though animal welfare laws have ameliorated some of the pain of animals used in biomedical research, ethical concerns remain, and veterinarians and physicians are demanding ...
How does ethical sensitivity affect agribusiness?
All in all, consumers’ growing ethical sensitivity about what we eat could ultimately transform agribusiness. More acreage might be assigned to growing fruits and vegetables relative to those given over to livestock grazing, for instance. Or revelations about slaughterhouse processes may reduce our acceptance of the ways in which meat is processed for consumption. The economic consequences for agribusiness of such changes are difficult to underestimate.
What is agribusiness?
Agribusiness is a huge industry that provides us with the food we eat, including plant-based and animal-based foodstuffs . The industry has changed significantly over the past century, evolving from one consisting primarily of family and/or small businesses to a much larger one dominated mostly by large corporations.
Why do we use microdosing?
Other techniques, such as microdosing, use humans not as test animals but as a means to improve the accuracy and reliability of test results. In vitro methods based on human cell and tissue cultures, stem cells, and genetic testing methods are also increasingly available.
How can the food chain be sustainable?
The food chain can be truly sustainable only when it safeguards the social welfare and living environment of the people working in it. This means eliminating corruption, human rights violations (including forced labor and child labor), and poor working conditions. We must also encourage and empower consumers to make informed choices, which includes enforcing labeling regulations and the posting of relevant and accurate dietary information.
Why is animal testing controversial?
However, despite significant progress, research using animals for product testing continues to be controversial in the United States, particularly because improved technology has offered humane and effective alternatives.
What Is Industrial Livestock Production?
Livestock production used to be an important part of small- and medium-sized independent farms; animal manure fertilized crops, animals ate farm waste products, and the sale of animal products in local markets provided important additional income to farmers. Some farms still operate this way, but they are no longer the norm, as livestock production has become big business.
Why are cost externalizations allowed to develop?
These cost externalizations have been allowed to develop because agribusiness, particularly the meat industry, has become exceptionally politically powerful both at the federal level and in rural livestock-producing states around the country.
Why are CAFOs not industrial?
Because CAFOs are classified as “agricultural” and not “industrial,” despite the massive scale of their operations, they are not subject to the appropriate level of regulation that their size and the amount of pollution they produce really warrant. 7 The industry has been able to block, undercut and shape laws and regulations that should protect the public from the environmental, public health and economic consequences of CAFOs; as such, most of these policies instead favor the industry heavily.
How does manure affect food safety?
Finally, the crowded conditions in which the animals live and the increasingly rushed speeds of the slaughter and processing facilities make it easy for disease to spread, which can lead to other food safety risks: for example, manure can stick on an animal’s hide and bacteria can then be transferred to the meat in the slaughterhouse. Contamination of one animal can lead to the contamination of thousands of pounds of meat, and in today’s consolidated meat industry, a problem at one facility can impact the whole country. 23 In 2010, the conditions at two Iowa egg companies caused a recall of more than 500 million eggs potentially tainted with Salmonella. 24
Why is it so hard to compete in the supply chain?
But with so few companies controlling the market, it is extraordinarily hard for smaller operations to compete, especially because the costs of producing meat sustainably on pasture can be four times as high as industrial methods.
What is intensive crop production?
Intensive crop (plant) production (frequently termed industrial agriculture) artificially divorces two countering aspects of a naturally closed-loop and renewable cycle – nature’s reciprocal and balanced system whereby crops feed animals and animal wastes fertilize crops. What we have instead are depleted soils on one hand and toxically excessive animal wastes on the other – both problems generated by commercial agriculture. 1
What animals are raised in confinement?
Cattle, hogs, chickens and turkeys are the most common livestock raised in confinement operations; but other types of poultry, as well as sheep, goats and rabbits, are also being raised more and more this way.
When to process animal products
Below is a quick reference table indicating when to process animal products, without regard to aging in casks. Aging cheese or goat cheese in a cask will almost always result in profit. This table also does not take into account the chance of obtaining 2 Cloth from 1 Wool.
Profit
The table below shows the profit gained (or lost) from processing animal products through their respective Equipment. Gains less than 100%, which are losses, are highlighted in red.
What are the three factors that determine a farm's profitability?
The 3 Most Important Factors for a Profitable Farm. Regardless of how you grow, the profitability of your farm will depend on three main factors: demand, viability, and profit margin. Lots of new farmers focus the majority of their efforts on their ability to grow a single crop and forget to do research on the other factors.
What is profit margin?
Profit margin is the money you have left over after you pay to cover all of your costs. Some crops can provide better profit margins than others. Think of it this way: When you set up a farm, you pay capital expenses (CapEx) to acquire all of your system components, like media, lights, and structural components.
What is net profit?
All of your profit margins contribute to your net profit, which is the total amount of money you’ll keep as a result of your sales. Much of the profit you make from selling your produce will need to be put back into your farm to keep it running and producing.
Why is market research important?
You’re out of money and have no way to make it back. This is why market research is so crucial. You need to know what people will buy from you not just once, but many times. You also need to know how much they want to consume on a regular basis so you don’t end up with a lot of wasted produce.
Is success dependent on farming?
That said, this type of success isn’t just dependent on your personal farming abilities. It will largely be influenced by where you farm, what type of farm environment you have, and what type of system you’re growing in.
How can economic incentives help animals?
Economic incentives to treat animals better can be very effective. One huge positive force for improving animal welfare is that consumers are demanding that animals be treated better. Corporations, both large and small, can be motivated to improve practices when consumers demand it.
What is the worst way to pay animal handlers?
The worst way to pay animal handlers is based on how many they can handle per hour. This will result in rough treatment of the animals. The author has observed terrible handling of pigs, cattle, and poultry when workers were financially rewarded for high speed handling.
How to attract animals to a stun box?
Removing distractions that make animals balk and refuse to move such as reflections on shiny metal, seeing people up ahead, air blowing into the faces of approaching animals, or changes in the color or texture of flooring. Adding indirect illumination to light up a dark race or stu n box entrance to attract the animals in.
What is the second half of the chapter on animal welfare?
The second half of the chapter will cover economic factors that are detrimental to good animal welfare.
How to pay people to load and unload livestock?
Use Economic Incentives to Pay People Who Handle Load and Unload Livestock and Poultry – Reward animal handlers who load animals extra pay for low levels of bruises, injuries and deads. In the U.S. and British poultry industry, broken wings were reduced from 5% to 1% by paying a bonus to the chicken loaders when broken wings were 1% or less. The same system has also worked well for people handling pigs and cattle. The worst way to pay animal handlers is based on how many they can handle per hour. This will result in rough treatment of the animals. The author has observed terrible handling of pigs, cattle, and poultry when workers were financially rewarded for high speed handling. Workers should be rewarded for high quality handling. It is also essential to not understaff or overwork the people. Tired people will abuse animals. Internal unpublished data from large pigs and poultry companies has shown that death and injuries doubled after the truck loading crews had worked more than six hours.
Why is genetic selection bad?
Genetic selection solely for rapid weight gain, large muscle growth or ever increasing milk production. Single-minded over selection for production traits has many bad side effects such as reduced disease resistance in pigs (Meeker et al., 1987; Johnson et al., 2005). A study in Belgium showed that the slower growing genetic types of broiler chickens on organic farms had less fluctuating asymmetry compared to conventional fast growing genetics (Tuyttens et al., 2007). Fluctuating asymmetry occurs when the one side of an animal may be either bigger or smaller than the other side. Animals that are not symmetrical often have genetic defects. A high producing America Holstein gives twice as much milk, but she may burn out after only two lactations. A New Zealand grass-fed Holstein lasts twice as long. The producer wants to get the short term economic gains, but in the long run, economics may be worse due to a lack of disease resistance and a higher cost of replacement heifers.
Does Paylean affect pigs?
This feed additive makes pigs big and lean and too high a dose may increase the percentage of non-ambulatory pigs.
Why do farmers treat animals the same as workers treat equipment or machinery in a factory?
By treating farm animals the same as workers treat equipment or machinery in a factory, farmers are able to raise and produce animals at extraordinary rates. Doing so makes it final product, clothing or food in most cases, significantly cheaper for the consumer.
How has animal agriculture made it possible for food corporations to turn farms into efficient factories?
The advent of industrial animal agriculture has made it possible for food corporations to turn farms into efficient factories, by doing so, disregarding the fact that they are dealing with sentient beings and forcing them to endure a lifetime of suffering and cruelty.
What Percent of Animals Come from Factory Farms?
In the US alone, over 95% of all animals raised to feed humans come from factory farms.
Is Animal Agriculture the Leading Cause of Deforestation?
The land use alone for factory farming and the deforestation that goes along with it paints a grim picture.
Why is Animal Agriculture Bad for Human Health?
Factory farming isn’t just bad for animals and the environment . It’s bad for humans as well.
Why do multinationals have complete control over their own production?
And because they are able to contract the dwindling number of farms to produce animal products their way , they have complete control.
How does factory farming maximize profits?
Factory farming, from a business perspective, is a brilliant way to maximize profits by dramatically increasing the supply while at the same time bringing down production costs. And if factory farming was dealing with the production of cotton T-shirts or toys then it wouldn’t be as objectionable as it is.
What is production in dentistry?
Production is provided to a doctor for all services and products a doctor provides a client in the exam room and also is provided credit for the oversight of dental cases and the actual performance of surgery whether they are the doctor who recommended it or not.
What should an associate do if an associate has an issue with hospital fees?
If an associate has an issue with hospital fees, it should be either brought to a doctors meeting for a resolution amongst all or brought to management's attention in a one-on-one session. The use of hospital estimates should be mandated. Clients need a clear understanding of expected charges.
Can you cut expenses in a hospital?
You cannot make money cutting expenses in a hospital. The best you can do is to control them. Budgeting is the best way to do that. Also, benchmarking your practice to the industry averages will let you know if you are in line with others. Below are the industry averages for the most common expenses:
How does factory farming affect animals?
It’s a widely accepted fact that high levels of stress in humans can cause heart attacks, elevated blood pressure, adrenal failure , and increased susceptibility to disease.
Why are farm animals so bad?
Most of the health problems that farm animals face are due to the fact that the majority of the meat that we consume in North America is produced by large, industrialized factory farms where animals are treated as units of production, where profit is more important than animal welfare.
What happens when dairy cows are factory fed?
In addition, the unreasonably high milk yield of factory farm dairy cows often lead to mastitis, a painful disease of the udders. Rather than improving living conditions for animals, factory farms will inject them with regularly inject them with antibiotics to keep disease at bay.
What are the conditions in factory farms?
In factory farms, animals are usually kept in cramped, unsanitary living conditions with no access to fresh air with restricted movement, injected with growth hormones, fed inappropriate diets, and even mutilated to prevent them from injuring themselves or one another and to facilitate forced feeding. These extremely stressful living conditions cause a whole host of health problems for animals.
Why are cattle more susceptible to disease?
Higher Incidences of Disease. Animals that are kept in unsanitary, crowded, and unsuitable living conditions are much more susceptible to disease. Cattle raised on feedlots frequently suffer from respiratory disease as a result of the dusty, dry dirt mixed with manure that they inhale.
What is the act of aggression?
Acts of Aggression. When animals are confined to cages and enclosures that do not allow them to carry out their basic needs, they often resort to aggression towards one another as a consequence of having to compete for space and resources.
Why do animals die from poor living conditions?
The stress of poor living conditions causes many problems with animal reproductive health. Moldy feed, excessive heat and dampness, as well as viral and bacterial infections may leave individual animals or entire herds sterile, cause abortions and birth defects in offspring, and even lead to death.
