INDUSTRIAL ANIMAL AGRICULTURE 1. Some definitions: What is ‘industrial animal agriculture’, and what are its properties? What are zoonoses?
Industrial animal agriculture is a modern form of intensive farming that uses intensive production lines and is designed to produce the highest output at the lowest cost. Industrial farms use new technology which provides them with high mechanisation, speed in production and low labour requirements. The animals in industrial farms are kept usually indoors with extremely restricted mobility. Battery cages for laying hens and veal crates are just some of many examples of industrial farming. (Garces & Nierenberg, 2005)
Zoonoses are any diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans. Some examples of zoonoses are : Avian Flu, Nipah Virus.(Graces et. al.,2005) 2. What are the main concerns for human health arising from industrial agriculture?
Firstly industrial framings produce large amounts of manure that pollutes water and air. This pollution may cause many human diseases for example ‘blue baby syndrome’ or E.Coli poisoning. Secondly, the animals in some industrial farms are fed with antibiotics to promote growth and prevent diseases. This was also proven to be a danger for humans as widespread use of antibiotics results in breading super pathogens (drug resistant bacteria).Besides antibiotics there are also other toxic substances which are used to feed the animals on these farms. These toxins may be contaminated in animal tissues and they create the risk for people who consume them. There are also indirect effects caused by these farms. As meat from industrial farms is reasonably cheap it is supplied to many fast food restaurants. As more and more restaurants of this type come to be in the market more and more people are at risk of unhealthy dietary consequences such as heart diseases or obesity. (Graces et. al., 2005) 3. Why are undeveloped nations at greater risk for adverse health effect?
Undeveloped countries do not have many natural resources that could support animal growth. As demand for food in these countries is high the system of industrial farming seems to be the easiest and the most economically friendly solution. According to the International Food Policy Research Institute, undeveloped countries in Latin America, Asia and Africa will be leading producers of meat by 2020.(Graces et. al.,2005)As it brings some advantages such as people will get more food in these countries it also brings a danger which is associated with using industrial farming methods. We can expect that the pollution levels in these countries will increase dramatically in a few years and as a result there will be more episodes of diseases caused by polluted air or water or by overconsumption of industrial farm products.
Moreover, in many developed countries industrial farms are located in rural areas far away from main cities while in undeveloped countries many of them are located right outside or inside some of the most populated cities were they can pollute water, land and air.(Graces et. al.,2005). As there is not much education about the consequences of living close to industrial farms in undeveloped countries people do not see disadvantages of the system. These will lead to the spread of disease easily in these areas and will create more harm than good as medical systems in undeveloped countries will not be able to treat diseases at such a scale. 4. Why are factory farms deemed to be inherently hazardous for the transmission of diseases?
The purpose of the use of the industrial agriculture is to produce as much as possible at a low cost. This leads to overcrowding the places where the animals are kept. The consequence of this common technique is there is more animal waste produced than the farm’s land can absorb. Because of low cost requirements the treatment of waste may also be neglected and a huge amount of untreated waste may escape outside the farms and poison land, water and air. Animal waste escaping from the industrial farms is hazardous for the transmission of diseases as it may contain many pathogens and toxins. Also as manure decomposes it releases many substances such as amines, mercaptans, fatty acids, sulphides, phenols, amides and skatoles and these can affect air quality and make those people who are breathing it sick.
There are also hazards in wide consumption of these products. As industrial farm products are wildly exported and imported around the world this creates a very easy way to transmit diseases around the world.
Finally people who have direct contact with animals are at risk of catching many diseases that may be passed from the animals to humans (zoonoses). As people on these farms are not checked daily for any zoonoses they may spread disease to their friends, family and others. The most important issue here is that the pathogen which is spreading this way may be resistant to antibiotics because of widespread use of antibiotics in industrial farming.

5. Discus the evidence that the preventative use of antibiotics is potentially harmful to human health.
The preventive use of antibiotics is harmful to human health as it is breading antibiotics resistance bacteria. (Graces et. al., 2005) According to the article, the World Health Organisation and FAO are concerned that this overuse of antibiotics to promote animal growth in farming industry is helping to develop antibiotic resistant microbes which are harder to fight. The article shows that a massive amount of antibiotics is used in farm animals nowadays (ex. more than 11 million kg in US ) (Graces et. al., 2005). Moreover, antibiotics used in poultry production have risen 307% since the 1980s. Also beef cattle are given more antibiotics than 15 years ago and pigs are fed 15% more.(Graces et. al.,2005). Furthermore, the number of antibiotics used in these farms such us penicillin, tetracycline or erythromycin are important in treating human diseases. These antibiotics however are more often are used in animal farms not to treat diseases but to prevent them or to enhance growth of livestock. Widespread antibiotic use is breeding drug –resistant pathogens. Some evidence that the problem of excess use of drugs in the farming industry is serious is demonstrated by a study in Thailand. In this study it was proven that the workers who were working in pig and chicken farms where use of antibiotics was common practise had problems with treating the diseases caused by E.Coli and Salmonella. The Catholic University in North Conquimbo, Chile also discovered that there is a link between the creation of ‘super pathogen’ and the overuse of antibiotics. They discovered that there was a link between intensive fish farming and incidents of antibiotics resistant bacteria. The shocking study was made on so-called ‘spent’ dairy cows and ‘spent’ laying hens. These animals were exposed to antibiotics longer than the animals which were grown for slaughter from the beginning. The study showed that the bacteria which were found in the hens were 100% resistant to most common antibiotics (Graces et. al., 2005).

6. Describe the toxins and their sources that have been implicated in industrial farming accidents.
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins and organo – chlorines may be found in contaminated animal fat. Recycling animal fat into animal feed in order to increase growth leads to an increase in contamination of these toxins in animal tissue. This creates danger for people who are eating the animals that were fed this way as chemicals in animals’ tissues increase in toxicity as they move up in food chain. Studies performed on farmed salmon prove that the contamination of toxins such us PCB is much higher in farmed fish than in wild salmon (Graces et. al., 2005).
Another toxin that has been found in the meat of animals from industrial farms is arsenic. Organic arsenic in farms has been used to fight animal diseases and to promote growth. Most arsenic that is added to animal food is excreted in the chicken urine and manure however some of it is staying in animal tissue in organic and inorganic forms. The inorganic form of arsenic is a carcinogen and it creates the risk of many other human diseases (Graces et. al., 2005).
Some people argue that hormones which are used to speed up the growth of animals or to increase milk production may be harmful for humans as they can cause cancer and other health problems. The argument was proven by researches in 1970s when they discovered a high rate of cancer in women who were given diethyl stilbestrol (DES), hormone used to prevent miscarriage. At the time of the study the same hormone was given to cattle and chicken to promote the growth. Because of the proven side effects of the drug the US Food and Drug Association prohibited the use of that drug in industrial farming. There are however many other hormones which are still in use such as 1(IGF-1) which is proven to be a risk factor for breast and gastrointestinal cancer (Graces et. al., 2005). 7. Provide a survey of the nature of the pollution of the wider environment (water, air and land) that may arise from industrial farming.
A major problem with industrial farms is waste disposal. Research shows that the amount of animal waste is 130 times greater in United States than that of human waste (Graces et. al., 2005). As the treatment of animal waste is different than that of human waste when there is not enough land to absorb this waste it begins to be a danger for the surrounding areas. The waste can easily be moved with rain, hurricane and flood to surrounding areas and even into ground water. As this waste contains a huge amount of toxins such as ammonium nitrate it poisons water and land and creates serious risks for public health in these areas. A study of farming in Jiangsu Province in China also showed that there is also a high concentration of metals in manure such as copper, zinc, chromium, lead and cadmium and these have the adverse effects on embryonic development. Besides metals, manure also contains many harmful for human pathogens such as E.Coli, Camplyobacter, Yersinia enterocolitica, Salmonella, Listeria and many more. It can also contain viruses such as Hepatitis E. Also many drugs used in these farms may be contaminated in manure of animals. Research showed that some of these drugs are endocrine disrupters and may cause reproductive disorders in wildlife and humans (Graces et. al., 2005).Thus if these toxins reach drinkable water or farmer’s land they may pollute it and make it unusable.
As manure decomposes it releases many substances such as amines, mercaptans, fatty acids, sulphides, phenols, amides and skatoles and those can affect air quality. Some research in United States showed that people who were living closed to the industrial frams showed more tension, depression, anger, fatigue, confusion, higher level of respiratory problems, less energy, plugged ears, irritated eyes, nose and throat. One of the gases that may cause some of these problems is caused by hydrogen sulphide which was found to be in high concentration where animal disposals take place. 8. Who is at risk from potentially harmful effects arising from industrial farming.
Firstly workers at industrial farms are at risk from potentially harmful effects arising from industrial farming as they are exposed for a long period to respiratory toxins, bacteria endotoxins, fungal moulds and the manure which generates ammonia and hydrogen sulphide. The problem for workers is also the dust which includes all sorts of allergens. Studies have shown that at least 50% of the workers who were working on industrial pig farms were suffering from health problems (Graces et. al., 2005).
However there are not just workers who are at risk. The products from industrial farms are cheap thus it is often the source of supply to many fast – food restaurants. This creates opportunity for business people to easily increase the numbers of these kinds of restaurants. However, the food provided by the fast food industry is not a healthy alternative for the human diet and high intake of this kind of food leads to hypertension, coronary heart disease and many other diseases.
Moreover the products of industrial farms may also be easily found on the market shelves so even though people will chose to prepare a healthy meal they can still be at risk as the meat may contain hormones, toxins or other substances which were contaminated in animal tissue over their life. Thus every person who is consuming meat from industrial farms is at risk.
Furthermore people who are living close to the industrial farms may also be affected as pollutions from these farms can easily spread to surrounding water, air and land. 9. Select ONE pathogenic organism described in this report and investigate the current level of concerns in the public domain or the media.
E.coli 157:H7
E. coli is one of the major foodborne disease which may cause bloody diarrhoea, renal failure and death especially in young children and elderly people. The spread of this pathogen is associated with industrial farming practice of quick, automated slaughter of animals. E.coli infects meat when it is contaminated with the contents of the gut of sloughed animals. As speed of slaughtering of animals in these farms is very high that often leads to gut spillage and then results in disperse of the pathogen in the food supply. E.coli infects meat when the contents of the gut come into contact with meat. People can be infected while consuming E.coli infected meat (Graces et. al., 2005).

10. Which of these health effects do you consider to be the most important?
In my opinion the use of antibiotics in industrial farms creates the most concern as it is breading drug resistant bacteria. Widespread use of antibiotics in industrial causes more and more bacteria to be resistant to treatment. This creates massive risk for human health as antibiotics are the main drugs in bacteria treatment. If more and more bacteria become resistant to treatment some of diseases can become untreatable again and that may lead to many worldwide epidemics.

11. What weakness (if any) do you see on the report?
In my opinion the report does not show much information about animal welfare in industrial farms. I think that never before in the history of humankind has there been such cruelty on such a massive scale. Animals are genetically designed by machines, inseminated by machines, fed by machines, monitored, herded, electrocuted, stabbed, cleaned, cut and packaged by machines. In my opinion the report should point out this issue as well because there are many people in the world who are sensitive to animal cruelty and that would decrease the demand for this kind of food or put pressure on development of cheap but less cruel methods of farming.