Animal factory : the looming threat of industrial pig, dairy, and poultry farms to humans and the environment

Swine flu. Bird flu. Unusual concentrations of cancer and other diseases. Massive fish kills from flesh-eating parasites. Recalls of meats, vegetables, and fruits because of deadly E-coli bacterial contamination. Recent public health crises raise urgent questions about how our animal-derived food is raised and brought to market. In Animal Factory, bestselling investigative journalist David Kirby exposes the powerful business and political interests behind large-scale factory farms, and tracks the far-reaching fallout that contaminates our air, land, water, and food. In this thoroughly researched book, Kirby follows three families and communities whose lives are utterly changed by immense neighboring animal farms. These farms (known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, or CAFOs), confine thousands of pigs, dairy cattle, and poultry in small spaces, often under horrifying conditions, and generate enormous volumes of fecal and biological waste as well as other toxins. Weaving science, politics, law, big business, and everyday life, Kirby accompanies these families in their struggles against animal factories. A North Carolina fisherman takes on pig farms upstream to preserve his river, his familys life, and his home. A mother in a small Illinois town pushes back against an out-sized dairy farm and its devastating impact. And a Washington State grandmother becomes an unlikely activist when her home is invaded by foul odors and her water supply is compromised by runoff from leaking lagoons of cattle waste. Animal Factory is an important book about our American food system gone terribly wrong---and the people who are fighting to restore sustainable farming practices and save our limited natural resources. Swine flu. Bird flu. Massive fish kills and filthy river systems. Recalls of spinach, lettuce, and other vegetables because of E-coli bacteria contamination. Eric Schlosser's classic "Fast Food Nation" revealed how our meat is bred, raised, and brought to market. Now, in "Animal Factory", bestselling journalist David Kirby takes the next step, exposing the devastating health and environmental impact of large-scale factory farms. In this thoroughly researched book, Kirby follows three American families and communities - one in North Carolina, one in Illinois, and one in Washington state - whose lives are utterly changed by immense neighbouring animal farms. These farms (known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, or CAFOs), confine thousands upon thousands of pigs, dairy cattle, and poultry in small spaces, and generate enormous volumes of fecal and biological waste as well as other pollution to the air, land, and water. Weaving complex science, politics, business, and the lives of everyday people, Kirby accompanies a fisherman who fights to preserve his family's life and home; watches as a Midwestern community pushes back against a local farmer with grand ambitions; and interviews an unlikely activist, who takes on a powerful alliance of corporate and political entities when her home is covered with toxic soot and her water supply is compromised by runoff from lagoons of animal waste. Written with power, insight, and narrative momentum, "Animal Factory" documents a crisis that has reached a critical juncture in the history of human health and our larger global environment Massive Fish Kills From Flesh-eating Parasites. Unusual Concentrations Of Cancer And Other Diseases. Recalls Of Meats, Vegetables, And Fruits Because Of Deadly E-coli Bacterial Contamination. Recent Public Health Crises Raise Urgent Questions About How Our Animal-derived Food Is Raised And Brought To Market. This Book Is About Our American Food System Gone Terribly Wrong--and The People Who Are Fighting To Restore Sustainable Farming Practices And Save Our Limited Natural Resources. Investigative Journalist David Kirby Exposes The Powerful Business And Political Interests Behind Large-scale Factory Farms, And Tracks The Far-reaching Fallout That Contaminates Our Air, Land, Water, And Food. He Follows Three Families And Communities Whose Lives Have Been Utterly Changed By Immense Neighboring Animal Farms, Turning Them Into Unlikely Activists.--from Publisher Description. Exposes the devastating health and environmental impact of large-scale factory farms. This book follows three American families and communities - one in North Carolina, one in Illinois, and one in Washington state - whose lives are utterly changed by immense neighbouring animal farms.