Meat production today is not always a healthy operation. Ever since factory farm operation came into being the quality of meat they produce is questionable. Factory farms is out of proportion to the rural areas where they were sited, which degrades the quality of life for most everyone around them. Whether it's cows, hogs, chickens or turkeys - their high number can seem intolerable to neighbors.

These factory farms have driven many of the family farms out of business in recent years. That is because family farms are hard pressed to defend themselves, given state tax rules which favor large farms. Clean Water Action Council is currently trying to help some of these citizens with information and support.

Factory farming is the process of raising farm animals in confinement of high stocking density. Confinement in high stocking density requires anti-biotics and pesticsides to mitigate the spread of disease exacerbated by these crowded living conditions. There are differences in the way factory farming techniques are practiced around the world.

There are continuous debates over the benefits and risks of factory farming. The efficiency of food production, animal welfare, whether it is essential to feed the growing global human population, the enviroment impact and the health risks. The UN and OIE estimate in the coming decades there will be billions of additional consumers in developing countries eating factory farmed meat.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,  farms on which animals are intensively reared can cause adverse health reactions in farm workers. Workers may develop acute lung diseases, muscular skeletel injuries, and may catch infections that transmit from animals to human beings. Pesticides can make their way into consumers bodies which can cause health problems.

In the European Union, growth hormones are banned on the basis that there is no way of determing a safe level. The use of intensive farming are thought to make it more likely to evolve harmful diseases. Many communicable diseases spread rapidly under such conditions. Animals raised on antibiotics may develop anti-biotic resistant strains of pathogenic bacteria. Use of animal vaccines can create new viruses that kill people and cause flu pandemic threats.

The poor ethics of factory farming creates cruety to animals, crowding, drugging and performing surgery on animals.

The ensuing problem gets down to this. Factory farming meat is usually not as safe for human consumption as it should be. When you hear about meat product recalls you can probably bet that it was produced in one of these factory farms. If you want to guarantee the meat you purchase is free of hormones, antibiotics and pesticides you better be sure that it is stated at the meat counter where you buy it.

It's true that healthy meat is a little more costly than the typical meat you buy in your local grocery but you are insuring that it is healthier and safer to eat. These conditions are true of all animal meat including beef, pork and chicken. It's even important to know that the condition for chickens refers to the eggs they produce also.

Until we get the controlling government agencies to demand better safety production of meat we will be faced with same health problems that exist today. What everyone has to consider is this. Is it worth spending more money on healthier meat products?  I believe the answer has to be yes especially if you are concerned about your overall health risks. Believe me folks this is a serious problem you are facing.

Whenever you are eating any kind of unhealthy food you are creating a situation where your immune systems can be seriously affected. Now if you want to defend your body against the possibility of contacting a serious disease ... you better take all this information very serious.

So there is your choiice. You have to live with your decision. I hope you make the right choice.