Let’s talk about America’s farmgrown terrorism epidemic. Back on Sept. 11, nearly 3,000 people lost their lives in the attacks on the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Since 9/11, our government has spent more than $7.6 trillion on military and homeland security operations in response to the deaths of those roughly 3,000 souls. Now, compare that to the fact that each year, 23,000 Americans die from antibiotic-resistant infections, and another 2 million get sick. That’s the equivalent of nearly eight 9/11’s per year. But our government isn’t doing a thing about it.
In 2011 alone, nearly 30 million pounds of antibiotics were purchased by Big Agriculture, to promote growth in the animals, and to reduce the spread of disease in the horrific factory farm conditions. Photo credit: Shutterstock
Each year, Big Agriculture feeds millions and millions of pounds of antibiotics to factory farm animals, all to slightly increase their profits by plumping up their meat. In 2011 alone, nearly 30 million pounds of antibiotics were purchased by Big Agriculture, to promote growth in the animals, and to reduce the spread of disease in the horrific factory farm conditions. That 30 million pounds is a staggering four times the amount of antibiotics that were prescribed to humans that year.
These are otherwise healthy animals, but they’re getting dosed daily with low levels of antibiotics anyway. As a result, this widespread and unnecessary use of antibiotics in factoryfarm animals is creating a major public health crisis here in the U.S by breeding antibiotic resistant infections caused by bacteria referred to in the media as superbugs.
But rather then enforcing regulations already in place to control the use of antibiotics in factory farm animals, our federal government is bowing to the interests of Big Agriculture, and is continuing to let the abuse go on.