Big Ag

Pink Slime

CAFO

Processed Confinement

Abuse

P A S T

P A S T

1773

P A S T

The “more compassionate” slaughter method was officially

adopted some 200 years later. Benjamin Franklin claimed the

electricity made the meat “uncommonly tender.”

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)

Benjamin Franklin

proposes electrical stunning

1886

In the early years of this century [the 1900s], hog cholera "often swept

through the countryside, causing devastating losses. During the fall months,

looking across the prairies of the Middle West, one could often see smoke

ascending from perhaps a half-dozen farms where pigs dead of cholera

were being burned," USDA veterinarian C.N. McBryde recalled later ...

P A S T

Cholera outbreaks in 1886, 1887 and

1896 each killed more than 13% of

the nation’s hogs

1930

P A S T

3% of all farms have electricity 1

1947 -1951

In the U.S. between 1947 and 1951, the average number of

reported human cases of trichinosis each year was 393 and 57

people died from the disease.

When trichinosis was at its worst

P A S T

1950-1960s

The switch to raising livestock indoors started in earnest in the

1950s and 1960s.

Transition to indoor housing

P A S T

1959

Hog Farming: “Pork People Like”

P A S T

University of Illinois

Hog Farming: “Modern Trends in Swine Production”

1961

P A S T

US Steel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=fvwp&NR=1&v=CcqxI7a6wSM

Eradicating Hog Cholera Agricultural Research Magazine

1978

On January 31, 1978, Agriculture Secretary Bob Bergland declared the

United States hog cholera free in ceremonies in Washington, D.C. This

was 99 years after USDA began hog cholera research and 17 years

after the start of a Federal-State eradication campaign.

US Department of Agriculture building

in Washington, D.C., United States

P A S T

Increasing Breeding, Weaning and Finishing

1980s

The number of large farms specializing in breeding, weaning

and/or finishing increases exponentially.

P A S T

1990

P A S T

Compared to pigs produced 40 years ago,

pigs in the 1990s have 50% less fat

In 1995 the United States becomes

a net exporter of pork

P A S T

Animal Production and Marketing Issues:

Animal Care and Food Safety

1997

P A S T

Improvements in technology have resulted in more litters per sow per year and more pigs saved

per litter (increasing from fewer than 7.5 in the early 1980s to over 8.5 in 1997)

www.aphis.usda.gov

P R E S E N T

P R E S E N T

2001

2005

In 2005 Smithfield Foods, food service giant Compass Group

North America and Environmental Defense announce a first-of-its-

kind purchasing policy to curb antibiotic use in pork production.

The policy, which applies to Compass Group's U.S. operations,

prohibits the purchase of pork in which antibiotics that belong to

classes of compounds approved for use in human medicine have

been used for growth promotion purposes. It also requires

suppliers to report and reduce antibiotic usage over time.

Antibiotics Policy

P R E S E N T

2006

According to the USDA (2006), bacterial contamination of pork

carcasses in packing plants is consistently lowest in large packing

plants, which, due to the large volume of production, are most likely to

acquire animals from large producers.

P R E S E N T

Less Bacterial Contamination in

Large Packing Plants

Smithfield makes the decision to convert from

gestation stall housing to group housing for all sows on

company-owned farms by 2017.

P R E S E N T

2007

Group Housing

Recent studies (2008) have shown that exposure to

Salmonella, Toxoplasma and Trichinella in pigs raised

outdoors and in antibiotic-free systems was higher than in pigs

raised in indoor production systems

OUTDOOR

INDOOR

54%

39%

1%

7%

2008

P R E S E N T

OUTDOOR

INDOOR

500

400

300

200

100

A 2011 study by Peter R. Davies, a professor in the University of Minnesota College of

Veterinary Medicine, revealed an 80-fold greater risk (per pig produced) of trichina

infections resulting from eating niche market versus commercial pork products. The study

concludes that pigs raised in outdoor systems inherently confront higher risks of exposure

to foodborne parasites.

2011

P R E S E N T

1947 1952 1957 1962 1967 1972 1977 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007

Number of Trichinosis Cases

Reported to CDC

2011

WASHINGTON, May 24, 2011 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) updates its

recommendation for safely cooking pork, steaks, roasts, and chops. www.fsis.usda.gov

USDA officially announces

lowering cooking temperature

for pork to 145°

P R E S E N T

“We don’t know what the future holds at

Smithfield Foods, but we’ll continually strive to

find new solutions.”

C. Larry Pope

President and CEO Smithfield Foods, Inc

F U T U R E

F U T U R E

BioEnergy

F U T U R E

Global population is expected to hit 9 billion by 2050.

How will we feed that many hungry people responsibly?

2025? Vertical farm

F U T U R E

F U T U R E

Lab-grown meat is first step to artifical hamburger By Pallab Ghosh, February 19, 2012

F U T U R E

2035?

Food project proposes Matrix-style vertical chicken farms By Olivia Solon, February 15, 2012

F U T U R E

PRESENT FUTURE BEYOND PAST

NUMBER OF PEOPLE FED BY ONE U.S. FARMER

0

100

200

300

Transparency is key

Social Media

SFDtv

Castration?

Euthanasia?

Food

Security?

Energy Production?

Sustainable Intensification?

smithfieldfoods smithfieldfoods smithfieldcsr

www.smithfieldcommitments.com

1773

Benjamin Franklin proposed a “more compassionate”

slaughter method (electrical stunning), which was

officially adopted some 200 years later-he claimed the

electricity made the meat “uncommonly tender.”

http://www.depts.ttu.edu/meatscience/docs/2._History_of_the_Meat_Ind

ustry.ppt, Texas Tech University, pg. 7

1850 One farmer supplies 4 persons (est.). www.ag.ndsu.edu/agmag/history/history.pdf, North Dakota State

University (Ag Mag.), pg. 7

1860 One farmer supplies 5 persons (est.). http://www.ifas.ufl.edu/land_grant_history/events.html, University of

Florida (Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences)

1886 Cholera outbreaks in 1886, 1887 and 1896 each killed

more than 13 percent of the nation’s hogs.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/timeline/cholera.htm, USDA (Agricultural

Research Service), pg. 1

1930 13% of all farms have electricity. http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/life_farm.htm, USDA

1930 One farmer supplies, on average, 9.8 consumers in the

United States and abroad. http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1940 One farmer supplies 10.7 persons (est.). http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1947-51

In the USA between 1947 and 1951, the average

number of reported cases of Trichinosis each year was

393 and 57 people died from the disease. But from

1997-2001 the annual average was only 12 cases,

with no deaths.

http://www.foodsafetywatch.com/public/810.cfm, Food Safety Watch

1950 One farmer supplies 15.5 persons (est.). http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1959 Hog Farming: "Pork People Like"

1950s-

1960s

The switch to raising livestock indoors started in earnest

in the 1950s and 1960s.

http://www.ansc.purdue.edu/faen/Modern%20Facilities.html, Purdue

University Food Animal Education Network

1960 One farmer supplies 25.8 persons (est.). http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1961 Hog Farming: "Modern Trends in Swine Production"

1970 One farmer supplies 47.7 persons (est.). http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1978

Secretary Bob Bergland declared the United States

hog cholera free in ceremonies in Washington, D.C. This

was 99 years after USDA began hog cholera research

and 17 years after the start of a Federal-State

eradication campaign.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/timeline/cholera.htm, USDA (Agricultural

Research Service), pg. 1

1980 One farmer supplies 75.7 persons (est.). http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1980s

While production specialization had been increasing for

more than 60 years, the rate accelerated in the 1980s.

Farms specialize in breeding, weaning, finishing.

www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/emergingissues/.../1pigs.pdf, USDA

(Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), pg. 2

1990s Compared to pigs produced 40 years ago, pigs in the

1990s have 50% less fat

www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/emergingissues/.../1pigs.pdf, USDA

(Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), pg. 3

1990 One farmer supplies 100 persons (est.). http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farm_tech.htm, USDA

1995 One farmer supplies 128 persons (est.). http://www.pbs.org/ktca/farmhouses/sustainable_future.html, PBS (A

Sustainable Future by Beth Waterhouse)

1995 United States becomes a net exporter of pork. www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/emergingissues/.../1pigs.pdf, USDA

(Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), pg. 2

1997

Use of technology has produced more litters per sow

per year and more pigs saved per litter (increasing

from fewer than 7.5 in the early 1980s to over 8.5 in

1997

www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/emergingissues/.../1pigs.pdf, USDA

(Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), pg. 3

2005

Smithfield Foods, food service giant Compass Group

North America and Environmental Defense announce a

first-of-its-kind purchasing policy to curb antibiotic use in

pork production. The policy, which applies to Compass

Group's U.S. operations, prohibits the purchase of pork

in which antibiotics that belong to classes of compounds

approved for use in human medicine have been used for

growth promotion purposes. It also requires suppliers to

report and reduce antibiotic usage over time.

http://www.iatp.org/news/smithfield-will-limit-antibiotics-in-pigs, Institute

for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)

2006 One farmer supplies 144 persons (est.). www.ag.ndsu.edu/agmag/history/history.pdf, North Dakota State

University (Ag Mag.), pg. 7

2006

Additionally, according to the USDA (2006), bacterial

contamination of pork carcasses in packing plants is

consistently lowest in large packing plants, which, due to

the large volume of production, are most likely to

acquire animals from large producers.

www.animalagalliance.org/images/ag_insert/Pew/Public_Health.pdf,

Animal Agriculture Alliance Coalition, pg. 5

2007

Smithfield makes the decision to convert from gestation

stall housing to group housing for all company-owned

sows on company-owned farms by 2017.

SFD Press Release

2008

Recent studies (2008) have shown that exposure to

Salmonella, Toxoplasma and Trichinella in pigs raised

outdoors and in antibiotic-free systems was higher than

in pigs raised in indoor production systems.

www.foodpolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/pork_09.pdf, Foodborne

Pathogens and Disease (medical hournal), pg. 199

2011 One farmer supplies 155 persons (est.). American Farm Bureau

2011 USDA officially announces lower cooking temperature

for pork. http://www.fsis.usda.gov/news/NR_052411_01/index.asp, USDA (FSIS)