• Your replies should focus on the specific examination presented by your fellow student, and these should include an examination of whether or not the characteristics of the ethical theory and/or economic system were identified well, and whether or not their application and analysis was also carried out successfully. Providing such an examination is not an attack on your fellow student but an attempt to work together with your fellow student toward the better understanding of the ethical theories employed, as well as their application.

This weeks discussion will cover the Environmental impacts of Purdue Farms. Upon researching Perdue Farms, I believe the most apparent economic system in which factory farming thrives is capitalism. Functioning in a capitalist market allows for Perdue Farms to operate on a profit motivated, self-interest in which they mass-produce livestock while taking advantage of the lack of regulation on environmental and ethical policies. Perdue Farms also benefits from capitalism by taking advantage of the free market and underbidding and out-producing smaller farmers and monopolizing the industry. Without regard to the well-being of the animals, factory farms such as Perdue allow for the over-crowding of livestock, which leads to an abundance of toxic waste (Hoover, 2013). Being able to operate in these conditions creates a snowball effect of economic, environmental, and ethical issues. According to Anamoly (2015), "The federal government has delegated this responsibility to state governments, and many states have created animal welfare laws designed primarily to protect the interests of meat producers, and companion animals like dogs and cats, while excluding farm animals of similar or greater sentience from similar protection. Most states make it difficult to prosecute violations of animal welfare laws, and have relatively weak anti-cruelty provisions, which count a practice as unacceptably cruel only if it violates existing practices" (p. 250). Due to the lack of government intervention, Purdue's practices are allowed to continue to operate under these unethical circumstances.

The environmental impact of Purdue Farms is one of the largest threats it poses. Perdue Farms are overpopulated, which lead to massive amounts of waste that is stored and emits dangerous and deadly fumes (Hoover, 2013). According to Hoover (2013), "The Department of Agriculture estimates CAFOs create three times more waste than the entire American population does annually" (p. 6). The waste is then stored in "lagoons" which can sit for years at a time, meanwhile they are emitting dangerous methane gasses, amongst other deadly pollutants (Hoover, 2013). One law thatattemptsto implement some type of regulation is the Clean Air Act (Hoover, 2013). Also stated by Hoover (2013), "The government has frequently absolved it from responsibility that follows from such laws: under the Clean Air Act, for example, the EPA can excuse farmers from accidental release requirements for any hazardous air pollutant they use as a nutrient" (p. 9). These types of loopholes in the regulation are what enables Perdue Farms to continue to pollute the air and deem one of the few laws in the industry useless.

References:

Hoover, J. (2013). Can't you smell that smell? Clean air act fixes for factory farm air pollution (Links to an external site.). Stanford Journal of Animal Law and Policy, 6, 1-29. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.law.umaryland.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1043&context=student_pubs (Links to an external site.)

Anomaly, J. (2015). What's Wrong With Factory Farming? Public Health Ethics, 8(3), 246-254. https://doi-org.proxy-library.ashford.edu/10.1093/phe/phu001