Monday, March 12, 2012

Old McDonald had a Sow

The McDonald’s Corporation said on Monday that it would begin working with its pork suppliers to phase out the use of so-called gestational crates, the tiny stalls in which sows are housed while pregnant. -nytimes 2/13/12

Bacon is an empirically delicious product.  I cannot argue with that here. As a former vegetarian and as a current conscientious omnivore I understand too well the base human instinct to pull in the direction of the smell of such salt. But as a current pig farmer I understand more acutely too the intelligence and emotional capacity of the pig. Which is why I, despite the mouthwatering aforementioned smell, have made a promise to myself and to the pigs I love to raise, to never eat confinement pork. Ever. And I hope to show you in future posts why you should never eat pork. At all.

Before I delve into the latest on McDonald's press release let me paint you a picture of a pasture-raised pork operation in this country as it is what I know best. On Cane Creek Farm in Snow Camp, North Carolina Elizabeth MacLean (my eldest cousin) raises pigs on what is known as a closed system pasture-based operation.  She has both sows and boars of a variety of heritage breeds. She rotates the lovebirds through a series of six pastures through-out the year. She keeps only sows and boars that get along, together, to minimize bullying. The sows farrow (give birth) on pasture with the protection of English style huts. The piglets are then left to live with their mother and learn from her for the first 3-4 months of their life. Afterwards they are separated (to avoid any unwanted breeding of the little gilts) and brought to separate pastures where they live out the rest of their life on grass. When the pigs reach a healthy weight (around 6 months of age) they are brought to a slaughter house just 30 minutes away. Elizabeth stays with the pigs until they are killed, which is soon after they arrive, minimizing the stress to the pig.

It is a good life for a pig, if a pig must be eaten. In this system they are raised by their parents. They are given fresh forage on grass in fields that are spacious and permit them to run and run around. They are treated and handled with respect from farmers who truly love pigs.   
A model of a sow and boar (center) raising their piglets in harmony, outside, on pasture in NC. Credit: Nick Zigelbaum
This system requires more land. It requires more months for a piglet to 'reach weight'. The system also begets a higher price for the pork. The higher price is the price to pay for an animal that was raised with dignity.

Having now raised pigs for a couple of years I can tell you with absolute certainty that we shouldn't even be eating these animals. Pigs are the most intelligent animal in the barn yard. They form bonds with each other.  They form bonds with other species. They form bonds with their farmers. They are gentle, if raised well. They are meticulous creatures, as the only farm animal that doesn't defecate where they sleep or eat.  They like to be scratched behind the ears and will often roll on their sides for you to scratch their bellies. As inventors of the pig pile they love to cuddle. They have incredible memories and sense of direction and will learn their own way around a farm if given the opportunity to be completely free.
A sow, having just farrowed, outside. We hung a tarp up above her to keep the hot Carolina sun from dehydrating her. You can see on the far right a piglet just literally born seconds before this photo was taken. Credit: Nick Zigelbaum


But pigs are big. They are huge, stubborn creatures that will certainly go their own way if farmer and beast are not on the same page. They have jaws that have the dexterity and power to eat acorns and pit cherries and crush squash and watermelon with single bites. They have tusks that could easily take out a leg or arm.  The sows get to be over 600 pounds.  The boars can top out at closer to 1000 pounds. If you treat this animal with love and respect, it will repay you in kind. If you do not you will have a world of trouble on your hands. Which brings us to confinement pork operations.

Essentially everything I just told you about pastured pork has its evil opposite in confinement operations.  They replace grass pastures with concrete slabs. Some of the breeders never see day light and piglets are only offered access to their mother through the bars of a gestational crate. These are the crates mentioned in the article I have referenced above. The very crates that McDonald’s is doing away with from their pork producers.  They are sized to be nearly the exact same size as the sow’s body. This gives her virtually no room and has her immobilized there, in her crate, for eternity.

This is where a sow will spend virtually her entire life. This is the extent of the piglet/mother bonding that can occur; nursing through the bars of her prison. (Photo source:wikipedia)

To get a full view of how a sow is treated in a confinement farm operation please view the Humane Society’s video here. It contains disturbing footage of a hog farm owned by Smithfield. Yes, that Smithfield that makes the sausages you see in every grocery’s freezer. If you watch the video, you’ll stop eating their pork. How could you do anything otherwise? If you know you can’t watch the video because you know you hate to see violence against innocent animals, how can you continue to eat Smithfield (or any large pork producer’s) pork?

The Humane Society filmed this in 2010. But, it wasn’t until the popular Chipolte commercial aired during the Grammy’s this past February that McDonald’s relented to popular pressure and announced they were phasing out the crates.  They have yet to give a time-line but because of the public announcement, many are optimistic this will happen. I am thrilled beyond belief to know that those farming for McDonald’s will  soon no longer be permitted to use these crates. That is an extraordinary part of the market. And, so argues Mark Bittman;  “McDonald’s is among the most important food companies in the world, and one could argue that it and Walmart are the true pace-setters: what they do, others will do. When McDonald’s bans gestation crates, gestation crates will go bye-bye.”  But I beg of you all to think twice about supporting any farm that is only now phasing out such a horrific practice. If this is how they treat the mothers of the animals they raise, you could only imagine how they treat the other animals on the farm.

Pigs are intelligent, incredible, creatures. Phasing out gestational crates is a good step in the direction of animal welfare in farming. But it is just that, a step. You can congratulate McDonald’s should you choose. But don’t celebrate their small “step” by continuing to buy their pork products. Show McDonald’s that they need to do more for animal welfare by patronizing your local farm store and buying only their pasture raised pork. Or, by not eating pork at all.

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