ANSC 240 Quiz 2
what are disadvantages to gestation crates?
-significant reductions in animal movement (can stand up, lie down, more forward and backward 1 step) cannot turn around -limits natural behaviors -can increase stress-sterotypies (repetitive behavior associated with stress) -poor consumer perception
how are broilers housed?
-simple open floor -arrive as day old chicks and stay for 6-8 weeks -controlled light and temp
how are chickens now so much larger than they used to be?
-they are bred for muscling -breeding for traits is easy in chickens due to short life span -chickens being massed produced are not pure breeds, they are using genetic lines (10 popular ones w/ 3 making up 80%)
what are some effect of increasing efficiencies in the past 50 years?
-way few cows but huge increase in milk production (cows now compared to the 50s produce 3x more milk) -chickens lay 1 egg/25 hours -sows have ~2.5 parities per year (huge increase in live production per sow)
how does the % of income spent on food in the U.S compare to other countries?
10% of income is spent on food in U.S while in developing countries its closer to 40%
what is a genetic line?
a large mix of different breeds
what is the trend in quantities of meat animals produced since 1970
beef is almost always stagnant but everything else is increasing
what is a barrow?
castrated male pig
how do gestation crates get banned?
states prohibit them based on popular vote
how can someone fight against zoning ordinances?
sueing is the only way to override state/local rules
do separate entities own each step of the poultry industry?
no, it used to function this way but now it is all vertically integrated
are hormones used to in poultry production?
no, there are no hormones available to increase growth in chickens, and it is illegal
what is willingness to pay?
people are willing to pay extra based on their values
what is a grower/feeder/finisher pig
pig being fed out to market weight
what is protectionism?
protecting your products (in the case of prop. 12 they can protect their products in cali. but not in other states)
what is home rule?
if a state doesnt say anything abt it a local government can make a decision about it
how have farm inputs changed?
improvements of grain genetics has led to way more corn being produced
how old/how much do they weight when pigs enter and leave grower/finisher?
enter at 7-9 wks (~50-60 lbs) and leave at 24 weeks (~280-290 lbs)
how old/how much do they weight when piglets enter and leave nursery?
enter nursery at ~3 weeks (~12-15 lbs) and stay for 4-6 weeks (~50-60lbs)
where does most meat from large grocery chains come from?
feedlots/CFO
how has the swine industry consolidated?
in 1987 there was 243,000 hog farms in U.S, in 2017 we were down 66,000 hog farms, but there is 20 million more hogs
how are most cage free eggs raised?
in an aviary
why was the number of farms in the U.S decreasing?
increased efficiencies due to animals producing more per animal and producing different species
what is the trend in efficiencies?
increasing
who owns the big meat producers in the U.S?
foreign countries
what are disadvantages to enriched cage system?
high cost and low benefit bc its hard to market
efficiencies
how much an animal can produce given the input
what was the shift in housing systems?
huge shift from being raised outdoors to being raised indoors
how to animal product outputs compare in the U.S to other countries?
the U.S buys things for convenience while in other countries such as pakistan 95% of chickens are sold to market where they will be butchered on site because buyers want to see a healthy bird
how long do producers have to transition?
typically are given 20 years in case they just bought new equipment (20 years is the lifetime of a barn)
how have animal product outputs changed?
used to only buy raw products (like a whole chicken), now there is huge increase in diversity of animal derived products; especially in poultry
what is a liberal market?
very little govt. regulations on industry
has the U.S meat market consolidated?
yes, 3 meat producers produce the majority of the meat
how many eggs are produced per year?
~120 billion
how old are pigs weaned in the U.S?
~21 days
what % of farm costs is feed?
~80%
what are the focuses of IDEM and the county
IDEM determines how it can happen and focus on manure, while the county determines where it can happen
why did the NPB sue california department of Ag?
-proposition 12 violates the commerce clause of the constitution -it places undue burden on pork producers (outside of cali) -its a form of protectionism -federal govt. is in charge of interstate commerce not cali -most pork producers aren't even in cali and its very expensive to change
what is a CFO?
-a confined feeding operation has a certain number of animals and those animals are kept in confinement for greater than 45 days per year -regulated at both state and federal levels
what are disadvantages of group sow housing?
-allows greater social interaction- aggression has to be managed -cost is higher and requires more space and labor
advantages to group sow housing?
-animals can engage in natural behaviors, postural adjustments -greater sow interaction -better consumer perception
what is california proposition 12?
-california already banned certain types of housing systems for pigs, poultry, veal -prop 12 states that products produced in other states that come from animals that are housed in certain types of housing systems cannot be sold in california - passed and implemented in jan 2022
what are advantages to battery cages?
-contain bad behaviors -significant automation (feeding, egg collection, litter collection) -highly efficient
why has there been such an increase in broiler production industry?
-didn't appear until the 40-50s -used to be that once laying hens were spent they were used for meat
feedlot system basics
-enter at around 6-12 months and stay until 16-22 months of age -high-energy diet to pack on weight, muscle, and fat -rapid weight gains -may go from 400-500 lbs to 1200-1200 lbs
cons to cage free
-freedom of movement (aggression, mislays, injuries) -natural aggressive behaviors, cost, efficiencies
how are layers housed?
-in layered (5-10 layers) cage system -~1 sheet of paper per bird
what are pros to cage free?
-increased freedom of movement -natural behaviors -public perception
what is an aviary?
-indoor systems -multi tiered with high stocking density -can go up and down freely -nest boxes and floor allows for natural behavior
what are disadvantages to battery cages?
-limits animal movement and postures -limits natural behaviors -poor public perception
what is the difference in feedlots in the midwest vs. the west?
-midwest: smaller, more covering bc rain and farmland is more expensive -west: much bigger operations, more open, ~100 animals per pen
what are advantages to enriched cage system?
-more space per bird -more opportunities to engage in natural behaviors
what are the advantages to gestation crates?
-no aggression -precise nutrition for individual sows -better oversight of animal health -system allows highest number of sows per sq. ft.
why is it easier to shift housing systems in poultry than cattle?
1 owner of vertical integrated industry can make changes a lot more rapidly than cattle industry with many different owners and location s
who enforces CFO regulations?
Environmental Protection agency and Indiana Department of Environmental Management
what are CFOs in Indiana regulated under?
Indiana's confined feeding program and must be permitted by IDEM (state)
what is a CAFO?
basically a CFO with more animals
what does ad libitum mean and when are pigs fed this way?
all they can eat buffet to pack on weight; fed this way during grower/finisher
what are meat trends in other parts of the world?
also increasing bc increase in meat consumption bc increase in population and increase in income
what is vertical integration?
at least 2 stages are owned by 1 entity
what is happening in layer housing?
consumer demand and willingness-to-pay have created shift toward cage free housing
is indiana a home rule state?
no indiana is a limited home rule state, county gets to decide some things
what was the trend in the # of farms in the U.S from the 30s to the 90s?
decreasing
what is required to get an IDEM permit?
detailed animal capacity, farmstead plans from engineer, construction plans from engineer, manure management plan, plot maps, disclose violations. keep in mind all communication is public record
what are zoning ordinances?
dictates what type of land uses can happen where
what do CFO regulations focus?
keeping manure out of water
what is the trend in # of farms?
leveled off around 1990
what is a monopsony
market with one buyer
is the swine industry vertically integrated?
no it is very segmented based on purpose, it is rare to have farmer farrow to finish bc it is easier to separate based on purpose
is there a standard cage free system?
no uniform system, only standard requirements to sell as cage free
what is planning and zoning?
means by which a county can decide how they want to develop
why is the growth in production of chicken and fish exponentially larger than pork and beef?
more demand for chicken and fish because they have low amounts of saturated fats while pork and beef have high levels of saturated fats
do genetic lines become a breed?
no (only in beef cattle do they become a breed)
what has allowed consolidation to occur?
the liberal market (there is nothing in animal production telling them they can't)
