Factory farming is one of the leading contributors to the economy of USA. The USA has a mixed economy and factory farm regulations that limit the independence and freedom of farmers in this sector. The intervention is one of the government’s efforts to ensure the consumer is protected. Laxity of the government may lead to the consumer being exploited or harmed. The discussion below focuses on Perdue farm safety concerns of their products.
Chicken may serve as a vector for the transmission of disease-causing microbes (Keesing et al., 2010). This may pose a health risk to the consumer of poultry products, any person who may come in contact with the chickens. Diseases like fowl fever, caused by the H1N1 virus, have been known to cause many fatalities across the globe. Typhoid fever has been known for ages as being transmitted by birds. Firm chicken can act reservoir of salmonella typhoid. Typhoid can kill within few months if left untreated. Chicken can also harbor ectoparasites and endoparasite that may end up affecting the end consumer.
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Like any animal, chicken responds to a stressful condition by releasing stress hormones/chemical (Tummers, 2013). The stressful condition may be excess heat, or cold, overcrowding, disease condition, starvation or thirst. During the stressful condition, the chicken may release chemical such as adrenaline. Adrenaline is hormones released in the body in response to a frightening situation (Greenwood, 2016). Adrenaline causes an increase in constriction of blood vessels, pulse rate and the strength at which the heart beats. Leading to hypertension. When farm chicken with excess adrenaline in the body is consumed, may cause or exacerbate hypertension situation in the hypertensive patient. Hypertension can lead to stroke heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases. Cortisone, found in acutely stressed farm chicken when in excess can cause serious health effects to consumers. Cortisone reduces immunity, which can predispose the consumer to a lot of opportunistic infections.
Another consumer concern is the presence of antibiotic in the poultry product. Antibiotics are meant to kill microbes in farm animal. Some of the antibiotics have long half-life and can stay long in the chicken. This means the end consumer is most likely to consume antibiotic laden meat, causing poisoning to the consumer (Damron, 2013). Chloramphenicol is known to cause born marrow depression, and some beta-lactam may cause an allergic reaction to some consumers.
It is an ethical practice for the for Perdue firm to ensure safety for their customers. It should carry about a quality assessment of their product, advise them about any possible risk and take responsibility if their product is the cause of any health problem.
Animal stress, antibiotics, and animal health need to be checked regularly to avoid affecting the final consumer. Government agency should come into play to protect the consumer.
References
Damron, W. S. (2013). Introduction to animal science: Global, biological, social, and industry perspectives .
Greenwood, M. (2016). Approving or improving research ethics in management journals. Journal of Business Ethics , 137 (3), 507-520.
Keesing, F., Belden, L. K., Daszak, P., Dobson, A., Harvell, C. D., Holt, R. D., ... & Myers, S. S. (2010). Impacts of biodiversity on the emergence and transmission of infectious diseases. Nature , 468 (7324), 647.
Tummers, N. (2013). Stress management: A wellness approach . Human Kinetics.
