Factory Farms' Impact Devastating for Communities

Air pollution from animal farms is linked to almost eight times more premature deaths than coal-fired power plants, a 2021 study from Johns Hopkins University found. Other research has found that living near a factory farm is positively associated with risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and leukemia, and people who live near them report higher rates of headaches, depression, anger, and respiratory symptoms, such as asthma. 

The mega factory farm is the inevitable consequence of decades of federal and state agricultural policy that has incentivized growth at all costs, with few guardrails in place to protect the people who live near them, like Carolyn Bittner, many of whom feel their health and quality of life has been sacrificed for corporate profit and cheap meat, milk, and eggs. Read more here: https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/395967/iowa-factory-farm-pollution-sacrifice-state

​Processing Meat is a biweekly newsletter written by Kenny Torrella and Marina Bolotnikova that analyzes meat and dairy production’s immense impact on human and animal lives. Check out more of their work on animal welfare here.