factory farming

The neglected environmental and health benefits of fighting Big Meat — for humans.

In nearly every region of the country, farmers are on the front lines of the climate crisis, and they can play a key role in mitigating its impacts.

Small and medium farm operators in provinces such as Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia disproportionately suffer the consequences of climate disasters.

Experts suggest commercial poultry, especially factory-farmed and crowded in barns, is one culprit behind the rapid spread of avian flu. But one response by the Canadian government is to compensate farmers — paying the industry millions for bird slaughters — without requiring improved biosecurity against potential pathogens. Perhaps we should question this approach. 

It is of critical concern that our next pandemic is being hastened by our use of animals susceptible to influenza, especially chickens and pigs.

The high-intensity animal agriculture industry, more commonly known as the “factory farming” industry, is a major source of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, writes philosophy professor Colin Ruloff.

A private member's bill sponsored by federal Conservative MP John Barlow co-opted genuine concerns about infectious disease as a pretext for targeting animal protection advocates, write Jan Hajek and Kaitlyn Mitchell.

Meat, dairy and egg production in Canada involves forcing thousands of animals to live in filthy conditions. By any epidemiological standard, this is a disaster waiting to happen, write Jenny Henry and Darlene Levecque of Nation Rising.

Yes, say German researchers who examined the environmental cost of producing meat, dairy and vegetables in both organic and industrial agricultural systems.

We must dismantle the bomb that is factory farming in all its forms, whether that means returning to small herds and flocks raised outdoors on family farms or moving away from animal products altogether, Zack Metcalfe writes.

The Ontario SPCA is reviewing graphic new footage that shows staff at a hatchery, reportedly in southern Ontario, injuring and killing baby chickens by hand. The footage was leaked by Mercy For Animals earlier this month.

Krista Hiddema, the vice-president of Mercy for Animals in Canada, unpacks the environmental implications of fish farming and what you might be getting a piece of when you eat fish.

Netflix's newly-released film, Okja, is far from a cry for vegetarianism. But you still won't want to eat bacon after watching it, writes reviewer Katie Kalmusky.

This is not a case of a few bad apples—this is a rotting tree, writes Krista Hiddema, Mercy For Animals vice-president in Canada.

She says if the individuals are convicted, they face a fine up to $75,000, a maximum five−year prison sentence and could be banned for life from owning or being around animals.