See All-Creatures.org Health Position and Disclaimer
Industrial animal agriculture is exacerbating the risks of zoonotic diseases. Are elected officials ready to dismantle the system that got us into this mess?
Chicken "farm" in Thailand - Image by
Jo-Anne McArthur/We
Animals for the Guardian
To prevent the coronavirus’ spread, we’ve been told to create distance,
avoid others who are sick, lower stress, and to exercise—but our treatment
of farmed animals who are also susceptible to coronaviruses is exactly the
opposite.
Industrialized meat production is among the most dangerous enablers of
zoonotic infectious diseases. The sheer number of animals kept confined on
factory farms, the logistics of managing their waste on an enormous scale,
breeding practices that fail to prioritize genetic diversity, transportation
methods that maximize animal stress, and hazardous conditions endured by
workers all contribute to a powder keg of health, safety, and ecological
perils. Our current system is harming people, animals, and the Earth, and
COVID-19 should be our wake-up call.
Our industrialized agriculture food system puts both workers and animals at
risk. Keeping animals confined in tight spaces out of their natural habitat
increases the spread of diseases among them and the risk to humans. A
variety of animals can act as hosts for viruses like SARS-CoV-2 and
Influenza A. Animals on factory farms, in particular, serve as reservoirs
for viruses—for example, pigs and chickens carry different types of
influenza, which are continuously mixing and mutating. Just think, for every
human on this planet, there are about 10 land animals raised and killed for
food at any one time. Why are public health officials not addressing the
intensive confinement of animals? Studies have shown again and again that
the confinement of animals for food is directly responsible for the
explosion of deadly new strains of bird and swine flus. One notable bird
flu, H5N1, has a mortality rate of 60 percent. Can you imagine a pandemic in
which three out of five people who contract the virus die?
To make matters worse, antibiotic overuse in animal agriculture is a ticking
time bomb that can compound the problems we face with viral pandemics. All
too often, viral infections lead to superimposed bacterial infections.
Without an arsenal of antibiotics that work due to the rising antibiotic
resistance from overuse, death rates could significantly increase.
Just recently there have been reports that a mink may have transferred the
coronavirus to a worker at a fur farm in the Netherlands. While there have
been multiple big cats and domestic cats and dogs to get the coronavirus,
this is the first case tracing the virus being passed on to humans by an
animal, although the details remain unconfirmed. While more research is
needed to find out which animals can pass SARS-CoV-2 to humans, we already
know that our close interactions with animals living in confinement are
exacerbating the risks of zoonotic diseases.
If Big Ag keeps the status quo, we will potentially face even more dire
diseases down the road.
Our government has tilted the scale in favor of large agribusiness
interests, subsidizing them instead of more responsible producers, helping
to keep consumer prices artificially low compared to more healthful foods.
But now lawmakers have an opportunity to make changes to prepare our food
system for the future by prioritizing innovations in meat production—such as
meat derived from culturing living cells—and plant-based foods. Our leaders
have long acted to prop up industrial animal agriculture through subsidies
and exemptions from environmental, animal welfare, and worker-safety rules
and enforcement. It’s time now for our government to prioritize a
sustainable future.
Our laws and public health and regulatory agencies have failed us. The U.S.
has known a pandemic was coming, but instead of working towards prevention,
we built and financed the infrastructure to foster and breed zoonotic
disease, with only a system to react after the death and destruction were
already upon us. A recent report published by the Animal Legal Defense Fund,
details not only our country’s missteps but also the immediate actions
necessary from our leaders to mitigate COVID-19’s impact and prevent the
next pandemic.
As the world reels—with more COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. than any other
nation—our government can and should step up to meet the moment. Are our
elected representatives ready to facilitate change by dismantling the
industrial animal agriculture system, discontinuing subsidies and guarantees
for an industry that cannot survive without our tax dollars, and instead
offering financial incentives to farmers to encourage them to switch to new
crops and new technologies? Our leaders have helped Big Ag at the expense of
the greater good for too long. In this critical moment, it’s their duty to
protect our health and safety instead.
Aysha is a neurologist and public health specialist and the author of the book, Our Symphony with Animals: On Health, Empathy, and Our Shared Destinies. Visit her WEBSITE - AyshaAkhtar.com.
Return to Food Hazards in Animal Flesh and By-products
Read more at Vegan Health Articles
Read more at The Meat and Dairy Industries
Read more at COVID-19/Coronavirus Articles Directory
We began this archive as a means of assisting our visitors in answering many of their health and diet questions, and in encouraging them to take a pro-active part in their own health. We believe the articles and information contained herein are true, but are not presenting them as advice. We, personally, have found that a whole food vegan diet has helped our own health, and simply wish to share with others the things we have found. Each of us must make our own decisions, for it's our own body. If you have a health problem, see your own physician.