Would we have more vegetarians if people were aware of what goes on at factory farms and how can we prevent them from ruining our environment

Factory farms are large industrialized farms on which large numbers of livestock are raised in doors in conditions that allow maximization of production at minimal costs. Factory farms are spread out everywhere in the world, including many places in North America. They have many effects on the heath of the consumers of meat What is more, they are not environmentally friendly because they cause pollution in the environment. Farms that produce large quantities of meat play a large roll on the environment by polluting the water and the air we breath. When we consider the relationship between factory farming and the health of humans, we are not only looking at concerns for humans but also for animals. In addition, the fact that the air we breath in contains chemicals and bacteria from the factory farms poses a serious risk to our health.

In addition to the effects of factory farming on the environment, “there is evidence that the manner in which we treat our animals can result in deleterious public health implications” (Whiley and Ross 1). Research has shown that the rearing of animals at factory farms have led to many epidemics in humanity. Some of the diseases that result from the rearing of animals in factory farms are smallpox, measles and influenza, which affect people from time to time. “Given the levels of overcrowding, unhygienic rearing, transport and slaughter conditions, it is not difficult to see why” (O'Brien 1). Infections are spread by airborne route when animals are intensively reared. There have been reports of Salmonella bacteria infections among calves, laying hens and chicks (O’Brien 6).

The infected animals excrete the Salmonella bacteria and cross-contamination occurs due to the confinement in cages. The unhygienic conditions for the intensive production of broilers is a major cause of the contamination by salmonella of Poultry (O’Brien 6). Salmonella bacteria can even spread to nearby farms and cause harm to the animals in the neighborhood (O’Brien 6). This is because “the negative consequences of factory farming have been known to the companies and governments” (Turner 6) since at least 1979 and nothing has been done to ensure that the conditions in the factory farms favor the production of healthy meat products that are not contaminated with disease-causing microorganisms. However, there are still things that can be done to prevent the harm that is caused to the environment and human health by the conditions under which the animals in the factory farms are kept.

The first thing is to enact laws to govern the ways in which animals in factory arms should be kept and criminalize the mistreatment of animals in them by confining them in one small area (Landis-Marinello 1). When this is done, the pollution caused to the environment by the huge amounts of waste that are produced as a result of the confinement in a small area will be minimized if not stemmed. The laws that impose criminal liability for the abuse of animals should apply to the agricultural industry as well. Works Cited Landis-Marinello, Kyle H. "The Environmental effects of cruelty to agricultural animals. " Mich. L. Rev. Compassion in World Farming Trust, 1999. Whiley, Harriet, and Kirstin Ross. "Salmonella and eggs: from production to plate.