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On farms, animal protein is produced by
the application of techno scientific methods of animal farming. Such things as
genetic engineering and the confining of animals and the use of growth
promotants is commonplace. And these questionable advances in animal husbandry
have been copied by ‘developing nations’ to win more of the market share.
In an ironic twist of fate,
we wealthier nations have now become victims of our own inventiveness - as the poorer countries follow
our lead, but with lower labour costs, they’ve been able to undercut production
costs; the cheaper their product becomes the more efficient and diabolical our
own intensive operations have to become, to keep pace with our competitors. As
these ‘developments’ spiral out of control, so the small farmer goes out of
business and agribusiness takes over, in order to stay one step ahead of the
competition. Today most of the meat, dairy and eggs in supermarkets are
produced by large transnational companies, using industrial agriculture
methods. Consequently, the animals involved in this food juggernaut are living
out ever more horrific existences.
The
consumer accepts low standards of animal welfare, because they want cheap food.
And although most people wouldn’t be happy eating food that was knowingly
produced cruelly, in their own minds they consider their hands are tied. It’s a
take-it-or-leave-it situation. The only affordable animal products on the
market are ever more coming from intensive farming operations. The only
alternative, the option of not eating animal products at all, is something most
people have never seriously considered.
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