Factory Farm Overview

pic_factoryfarmaerial_090428 Meat production in the United States has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. Today, most meat, dairy products, eggs, and poultry is no longer produced on small family farms – instead, livestock are raised within huge industrial facilities that confine thousands (or hundreds of thousands) of animals in a small space without access to pasture.

Also known as confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs), factory farms are designed to maximize production without regard for public health, the environment, food safety, rural economies, animal health, or surrounding communities.

Too Much Manure

The fundamental problem with factory farms is simply that they confine too many animals in one place. As a result, they generate tremendous amounts of animal waste – often as much as entire cities. But unlike cities, factory farms aren’t required to safely process waste at sewage treatment facilities – instead, waste is stored in huge, open cesspools called manure lagoons, and eventually spread onto surrounding cropland.

Environmental Damage

Since factory farms create much more waste than can be absorbed by crops in nearby fields, waste is overapplied, which pollutes soil, groundwater, and surface waters. Waters are also polluted by manure lagoons, which often leak, and can overflow or collapse during heavy storms.

How Large Are Factory Farms?

The US Environmental Protection Agency defines small, medium, and large CAFOs: EPA CAFO Regulatory Definitions.

Where Are Factory Farms Located?

Factory farms exist throughout the US – see how they’re distributed by viewing Food and Water Watch’s Factory Farm Map.

Unfortunately, factory farms have also been built in Canada and throughout much of the rest of the world.

Learn More

Our website links to scientific studies, peer-reviewed journal articles, government reports, and news media articles that document the many problems caused by factory farms; resources are divided into the topics listed on our Issues page. The Featured section below list several excellent overviews of the harmful impacts of factory farms.

Featured

Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America

The Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production (PCIFAP) was formed to conduct a comprehensive, fact-based and balanced examination of key aspects of the farm animal industry. After performing an extensive, 2½-year examination, the commission released this report in April 2008. According to the commission, the current industrial farm animal production (IFAP) system often poses unacceptable risks to public health, the environment and the welfare of the animals themselves. Commissioners determined that the negative effects of the IFAP system are too great and the scientific evidence is too strong to ignore and recommended that significant changes be implemented immediately. (Pew Commission, April 2008.) You can request a free hard copy of this report by emailing the Center for a Livable Future at Johns Hopkins University.

CAFOs Uncovered: The Untold Costs of Confined Animal Feeding Operations

In this report, the Union of Concerned Scientists analyzes both the policies that have facilitated the growth of CAFOs and the enormous costs imposed on society by CAFOs. The authors also discuss sophisticated and efficient alternatives for producing affordable animal products, and offer policy recommendations that can begin to lead us toward a healthy and sustainable food system. (Union of Concerned Scientists, April 2008.)

Cesspools of Shame: How Factory Farm Lagoons and Sprayfields Threaten Environmental and Public Health

This report provides a detailed description of how animal waste from factory farms threatens human health and our nation’s rivers. 67 pages. (Natural Resources Defense Council and Clean Water Network, July 2001.)