7 Ways Factory Farms Are Scary for People Too

1. Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs


The practice of cramming animals together on factory farms while pumping them full of antibiotics creates a breeding ground for dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

2. Pollution


Earlier this year, the spread of dangerous phosphorus algal blooms in Lake Erie left hundreds of thousands of Ohio residents without safe drinking water. Agricultural pollution from factory farms was the primary source of the contamination.

3. Climate Change


Raising animals for food creates more greenhouse gas emissions than all the transportation in the world combined.

4. Rainforest Destruction


The World Bank reports that the majority of Amazon deforestation has been to clear land for cattle grazing and growing feed for farmed animals.

5. Excessive Water Use


It takes 576 gallons of water to produce one pound of pork, 880 gallons of water to produce one gallon of milk, and a whopping 1,799 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef.

6. Foodborne Illness


Salmonella, which is found in over 10 percent of all raw chicken breasts sold nationwide, is the cause of more hospitalizations and deaths than any other foodborne illness, sickening more than a million people a year.

7. Pink Slime


This vomit-worthy product is created by treating beef scraps and cow connective tissue with ammonium hydroxide to kill off E. coli, salmonella, and other dangerous pathogens that may be present.