Old MacDonald’s Factory Farm

Old MacDonald’s Factory Farm by C. David Coates is a great book to check out for anyone who eats meat, has ever eaten meat, or is thinking about becoming vegetarian.  Although the book was written in the late 80′s, much of the inhumane treatment of animals mentioned in his book is the same today.  Coates reveals the horrors of factory farming through comparisons between story tale views of farming and modern day methods of farming.  The reality is, cows don’t graze peacefully in huge, grassy meadows, pigs don’t take lie in a puddle of mud, basking in the sun, and chickens don’t freely wander the land, pecking the ground for bugs.  Mass-production techniques and modern business-efficiency programs turn out high volumes of products at a minimal cost per unit.  These products are living creatures, raised in dirty, unnatural environments.  

Coates, an animal-rights activist and vegetarian, reveals the horrors of factory farming, animal by animal. He also discusses genetic engineering, environmental effects, transportation of live animals, and the ethics of factory farming.  While his book strongly encourages vegetarianism, Coates also advises consumers how to look for humanely raised meat products.   

To get a taste of what the book is like, here is the preface:

Isn’t man an amazing animal?  He kills wildlife by the millions in order to protect his domestic animals and their feed.  Then he kills domestic animals by the billions and eats them.  This is turn kills man by the millions, because eating all those animals leads to degenerative- and fatal- health conditions like heart disease, kidney disease, and cancer.  So then man tortures and kills millions more animals to look for cures for these diseases.  Elsewhere, millions of other human beings are being killed by hunger and malnutrition because food they could eat is being used to fatten domestic animals.  Meanwhile, some people are dying of sad laughter at the absurdity of man, who kills so easily and violently, and once a year sends out cards praying for “Peace on Earth.”