High-powered commission to investigate public impacts of CAFOs

Air and water quality, animal welfare, and effects on rural communities are some of the issues to be taken up by a new National Commission on Industrial Farm Production. Funded by a Pew Charitable Foundation grant of $2.5M, the NCIFAP "was formed to conduct a comprehensive, fact-based and balanced examination of key aspects of the farm animal industry." The perceived problems?

Every year, between 9 and 10 billion farm animals are raised and slaughtered in the United States. The prevailing mass production system of raising farm animals provides consumers with affordable food, but could there be underlying costs of that production system that may prove to be more costly for Americans in the future?

Most consumers assume that the meat and dairy they buy comes from traditional family farms. But in reality, the majority of U.S. livestock and poultry are produced in large concentrated animal feeding operations. And while the number of farms in the U.S. shrank by almost 50% over the last 40 years, the amount of farm animals produced in this country continues to grow.

Some aspects of the current animal production system have created new challenges regarding human health, rural communities, and the environment. Concerns are centered on the emergence of food-borne diseases, antibiotic resistant bacteria, air and water contamination from animal waste, significant shifts in social structure and the economy of many farming regions, as well as issues of animal health.

The Commission includes former Kansas Governor John Carlin, former USDA Secretary Dan Glickman, actress and environmental activist Darryl Hannah, and Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation president Thomas Hayes, among others. A Reuters article provides additional details.
© 2006 Livestock & Ag Waste Intelligence