Pig Business Digs Up Dirt on Factory Pig Farms

There's no business like pig business, and thanks goodness because it's an ugly one. The new documentary, Pig Business, aims to uncover the horrendous impact that factory pig farming imposes on human health, the environment, small farmers, and of course, the animals themselves.

To help spread the word about this international farming crisis to U.S. lawmakers, the film will be screened on March 9th at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center in Washington D.C., an event hosted by the Center for Food Safety, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Congressman Dennis Kucinich, and a panel of other experts. Pig Business investigates the hidden costs of an industrialized farming system that is destroying communities and threatening consumers here in the U.S. and abroad, and explores what can be done to improve the current situation. The screening and panel discussion is open to the public, and whether or not you can attend, you're encouraged to invite your representatives.

Tracy Worcester, director of Pig Business and activist and mother of three, set out four years ago to trace the origins of cheap, imported pork in British supermarkets. She found herself on a trail that connects factory farms in the U.S. to small farmers in Central Europe. The film exposes how Smithfield Farms, the world's largest and most notorious pork producer, has exported its intensive farming model to Europe, exporting the disastrous effects of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and taking advantage of lax environmental and labor laws. Beginning in Poland and Romania, Smithfield plans to spread its destructive farming practices and products across Europe and the U.K.

Pig Business covers the broad spectrum of critical issues connected to factory pig farming, including threats to human health, the destruction of small independent farms, the dangerously excessive use of antibiotics, air and water pollution, deforestation, and atrocious animal welfare conditions. The film connects the all-important global dots of industrial farming practices that threaten the safety of all of us. Carnivore or vegetarian, environmental activist or concerned consumer, this film will have everyone up in arms and eager to push for legislative changes to create a more sustainable system.

If you can't attend the upcoming Pig Business event in D.C. or elsewhere, you can watch entire documentary online. And be sure sign the petition urging your members of Congress to attend the screening and panel discussion on March 9th.

Photo Credit: CALM Action via Flickr