Big Ag Wants Government Ban on Cameras in Factory Farms

March 15, 2011

Every Tuesday, we work with the deep-thinkers over at SoulPancake to choose a TakePart story and discuss the Life’s Big Question it brings to mind. This week we look at agribusiness and our rights. Look for this week's Big Question at the end of the story, then join the conversation!

factory_farm
If House File 589 passes, what&39;s behind closed barn doors stays behind closed barn doors in Iowa. (Photo: Planet Green)

Cows on their knees being shocked and beaten. Pigs hit and dragged across the floor. Chicks ground up alive or left to suffocate in a disposal bin. Such are the images captured when animal-rights activists gained employment on a factory farm in Iowa with the intent of recording abuses there.

A new bill in Iowa seeks to make that undercover strategy punishable by law. But which part of the situation deserves a trip to the courtroom? The filming and distribution of video content—or the animal abuse?

House File 589, which was passed with strong support by agriculture committees in both Iowa's House and Senate, will be debated on the house floor Tuesday afternoon. If passed, "undercover investigators who take agricultural jobs to gain access to animals and record their mistreatment, will face penalties up to a $7500 fine and five years in prison," reports examiner.com.

Animal-rights activists point out the obvious: that the bill will silence whistleblowers.

"It's very transparent what agribusiness is attempting to do here," said Bradley Miller, national director of the Humane Farming Association, according to the Huffington Post. "They're trying to intimidate whistleblowers and put a chill on legitimate anti-cruelty investigations. Clearly the industry feels that it has something to hide or it wouldn't be going to these extreme and absurd lengths."

But with an agricultural industry that was responsible for $24.7 billion in direct sales in 2008, Iowa's lawmakers would need to take a brave and principled stand to vote the bill down.

This week's Big Question from the deep-thinkers at SoulPancake: Should corporate America be allowed to lie to you in the name of privacy?

Should big business be allowed to lie to you? Join the conversation!

Comments 12

Submitted by Sharon Collette on Sat, 03/19/2011 - 8:49pm
of course they do their scared we see what goes on we'll stop being so easy to feed their line of crap, I'm not vegan but when i see what does go on i wish i were !!if we keep an eye on them they can't feed us damaged or abused animals , they are scared of us as a large group if we all came together they would have to do our will not the other way around

Submitted by Sharon Collette on Sat, 03/19/2011 - 8:49pm
of course they do their scared we see what goes on we'll stop being so easy to feed their line of crap, I'm not vegan but when i see what does go on i wish i were !!if we keep an eye on them they can't feed us damaged or abused animals , they are scared of us as a large group if we all came together they would have to do our will not the other way around

Submitted by Jennifer Becker on Wed, 03/16/2011 - 5:17pm
It's not just the Republicans. Remember that Clinton had ties to big AG and he was instrumental in NAFTA which came into action under his administration. You can't simply blame a group of politicians thinking that the other group is on your side. There are too many example of these pocket politicians serving their own interests across the board. If you want change you have to educate others and live it like you want it to be. Like M. Hanson states below, "If you don't agree with big ag then pay the extra cost and buy from the smaller guy, it costs more due to a higher over head. Otherwise it doesn't matter what Big Ag does because they know that they can get away with it."

Submitted by Terry Eyles on Wed, 03/16/2011 - 3:45pm
Sad, so sad what we will do for a dollar. It will come back to haunt us all one day.

Submitted by Susanne Donoghue on Wed, 03/16/2011 - 2:38pm
This is AmeriKa after all, where you can go to jail for telling the truth, but get big bucks for lying.

Submitted by Bobbi Jo Hanson on Wed, 03/16/2011 - 9:17am
I am a Goat Farmer I raise meat goats to sell both for breeding and to eat. Please don't put all farmers in the catagory of trying to cover something up. Most of us small to medium family farms welcome visitors, and even post video of our operations ourselves. I dont agree with big ag and the way that they treat their animals. I raise my own meat, and vegetables, I also drink milk from my smaller herd of dairy goats. If you don't agree with big ag then pay the extra cost and buy from the smaller guy, it costs more due to a higher over head. Otherwise it doesn't matter what Big Ag does because they know that they can get away with it.

Submitted by Bobbi Jo Hanson on Wed, 03/16/2011 - 9:17am
I am a Goat Farmer I raise meat goats to sell both for breeding and to eat. Please don't put all farmers in the catagory of trying to cover something up. Most of us small to medium family farms welcome visitors, and even post video of our operations ourselves. I dont agree with big ag and the way that they treat their animals. I raise my own meat, and vegetables, I also drink milk from my smaller herd of dairy goats. If you don't agree with big ag then pay the extra cost and buy from the smaller guy, it costs more due to a higher over head. Otherwise it doesn't matter what Big Ag does because they know that they can get away with it.

Submitted by Sarah Damian on Wed, 03/16/2011 - 9:07am
Whistleblowers are instrumental in ensuring the safety and integrity of our food supply. If you get a chance, please read my post on the Government Accountability Project's (national whistleblower advocacy organization) Food Integrity Campaign blog about how these proposed laws would affect workers whose voices are already stifled: http://foodwhistleblower.org/blog/164-proposed-anti-whistleblower-laws-threaten-food-integrity

Submitted by George H. Carpenter on Tue, 03/15/2011 - 6:02pm
The only difference between a Democrat and a Republican is the name! In Iowa there are people in charge of protecting the health and well being of children who choose to ignore any laws designed as such and these people are both Democrats and Republicans. If they don't care about our children I really don't think that the humane treatment of any animal will even be a topic of discussion. Both parties will take money from Big AG and throw out any hope that anyone has that there is anyone in office that could remotely be associated with real human beings.

Submitted by ShamanX on Tue, 03/15/2011 - 5:30pm
I'm sure that republicans are leading the charge here on behalf of big ag... It really underscores the differences between true conservatives and Republicans. A true conservative would tell you that this is government interference in the market and the public's ability to assert its interests. Republicans however exist in the back pockets of big industrys like Big Ag and will do everything and anything necessary to protect the interests of the wealthy elite power structure regardless of the cost to the public.

Submitted by Jennifer Becker on Tue, 03/15/2011 - 4:57pm
Accountability! All we are asking for is exactly that. I think that, especially a government subsidized company, should be held accountable for its practices. I am a teacher. If the principal, superintendent, parents, public can view what I do in my classroom at any time in order that I am held accountable for doing my job, the ag. corporations can at least do just that...allow us to view what they are doing. If there is nothing wrong with it, the public should have no problem with it and continue to purchase their products. If the public decides it's wrong, that's the business of the consumer. We should have the right to know where any product we buy comes from and how it is produced.

Submitted by Prosciutto Lover on Tue, 03/15/2011 - 3:41pm
Absolutely insane!!!!!!!!!! There is only one reason why farmers, and or processors do not want cameras inside their facilities...they dont want the public to see all of their violations and or the cruelty. Keep the public dumb, and uninformed, and they will continue to buy confinement meat from animals that endure cruelty.............