HOW FACTORY FARMS DISPOSE OF 12,000 HOGS

WORTH OF WASTEIN PICTURES: THE SMELLY REALITY OF HOW BIG BUSINESS

FACTORY HOG FARMING GAMES THE SYSTEM TO BIG

PROFITS AT THE EXPENSE OF COMMUNITIES, THE

ENVIRONMENT, AND SMALL FARMERSBy Motley Fool Contributor Jay Jenkins

The images in this presentation are used

with permission from the WaterKeeper Alliance

THIS IS THE STILLEY SWINE FACILITY IN TRENTON, NORTH CAROLINA.

IT’S TYPICAL OF FACTORY HOG FEEDING OPERATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY

THIS FACILITY IS HOME TO 12 BARNS CAPABLE OF HOLDING 1,000 HOGS

PER BARN…

THAT’S 12,000 HOGS

THIS IS A “LAGOON,” FULL OF 12,000HOG’S WORTH OF WASTE

THERE IS JUST A THIN CLAY BARRIER ON THE

BOTTOM OF THIS “LAGOON.”

THE WASTE OF 12,000 HOGS IS ESSENTIALLY FREE TO LEACH INTO THE

GROUND.

WHEN THE “LAGOON” GETS TOO FULL,THE WASTE IS SPRAYED ONTO THESE

FIELDS

IN THEORY, THE WASTE IS ABSORBED AND FERTILIZES THE GRASS, CORN, OR OTHER

CROPS GROWING ON THE FIELDS.

BUT THE FACILITY SPRAYS EVEN IF THERE IS

STANDING WATER ALREADY ON THE FIELDS.

REMEMBER, THIS IS NOXIOUS HOG WASTE. AND THE GROUND IS LITERALLY

SATURATED WITH IT.

WHEN THE FIELD IS SATURATED, THE WASTE HAS

NO WHERE TO GO, EXCEPT FOR THESE DITCHES.

THERE ARE LOTS OF DITCHES FOR THE EXCESS WASTE. THE FIELDS ARE VERY

WELL IRRIGATED.

THE DITCHES HAVE TO RUN SOMEWHERE…LIKE INTO NEIGHBORING WETLANDS.

IT’S A STONE’S THROW TO RIVERS, CREEKS, STREAMS,

AND THE WATER SUPPLY

THE OUTCOME IS PREDICTABLE: POLLUTED WATER, BACTERIA, FISH KILLS, ALGAE BLOOMS

THIS IS NOT A NEW PROBLEM

EXCERPT FROM NEW YORK TIMESJUNE 25, 1995

OTHER WELL-KNOWN AND NOTABLE SPILLS

• IN 2011, A FACTORY HOG FARM IN ILLINOIS SPILLED 200,000 GALLONS OF MANURE INTO A

CREEK. 110,000 FISH WERE KILLED.

• IN 1999, HURRICANE FLOYD BURST AT LEAST 5 MANURE LAGOONS AND FLOODED AT LEAST

47 MORE IN NORTH CAROLINA ALONE.

• EVERY YEAR IN THE GULF OF MEXICO, A MASSIVE “DEAD ZONE” FORMS AS A RESULT OF

ALGAE BLOOMS. IN THE SUMMER OF 2002, THIS “DEAD ZONE” STRETCHED OVER 7,700

MILES.

• NUMEROUS OUTBREAKS OF PFIESTERIA PISCICIDA HAVE KILLED MILLIONS OF FISH AND

RESULTED IN SKIN IRRITATION, SHORT TERM MEMORY LOSS, AND OTHER COGNITIVE

PROBLEMS IN LOCAL PEOPLE. PFIESTERIA OUTBREAKS CAN BE LINKED TO THE SAME

POLLUTANTS AND LOCATIONS AS KNOWN HOG AND POULTRY FARM SPILLS.

• ON JULY 7, 2013, NEARLY 600 RESIDENTS IN EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA FILED A COMPLAINT

THAT A LOCAL HOG OPERATION HAD CAUSED POLLUTION, FLIES, AND STENCH THAT HAS

DEPRIVED THEM OF THE USE AND ENJOYMENT OF THEIR PROPERTY

SOURCE: NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL

IN 1997, NORTH CAROLINA ISSUED A MORATORIUM

ON THE BUILDING OF ANY NEW HOG “LAGOONS”

OVER 4,000 REMAIN IN OPERATION TODAY, DESPITE THE MORATORIUM

ALTERNATIVES EXIST, BUT INDUSTRY PLAYERS REFUSE TO IMPLEMENT THE

TECHNOLOGY…

• MARC YAGGI, OF THE WATER KEEPER ALLIANCE, PUT IT:

“IN 2000, SMITHFIELD [THE LARGEST HOG PRODUCER IN NC] ENTERED

INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE NORTH CAROLINA ATTORNEY

GENERAL TO FUND DEVELOPMENT OF ENVIRONMENTALLY SUPERIOR

WASTE MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGIES FOR SWINE FACILITIES.

SEVERAL TECHNOLOGIES WERE DEVELOPED THAT PRACTICALLY

ELIMINATED THE WASTE STREAM, BUT $17.1 MILLION LATER,

SMITHFIELD DECLARED THE SYSTEMS WERE NOT „ECONOMICALLY

FEASIBLE,‟ AND NO FURTHER ACTION HAS BEEN TAKEN TO

IMPLEMENT CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES. ”

Source: Huffington Post

THE “ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY” ARGUMENT SEEMS THIN

SMITHFIELD FOODS WAS PURCHASED BY HONG KONG-BASED SHUANGHUI INTERNATIONAL

HOLDINGS LTD. FOR $7.1 BILLION IN SEPTEMBER 2013.

IT REPORTED OVER $13 BILLION IN SALES LAST YEAR,

AND OPERATING PROFITS OVER $500 MILLION.

OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS, AGGREGATE OPERATING PROFITS EXCEEDED $4.3 BILLIONSource: Smithfield Foods 2013 Annual Report

CONCLUSIONS:

• The “lagoon” system of waste disposal is ineffective. It pollutes local

environments, endangering wildlife and local communities.

• Multi-national companies running the industry have the capital to

implement the changes over a reasonable time horizon, but do not in

the name of “economic feasibility.”

• Regulations, while well intentioned, have fallen short.

• Its time for the industry and the government to jointly fix this problem.

Action today protects the environment, protects the

community, and protects the long term ability of the

industry to succeed in North Carolina and elsewhere.

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