Key Resources
Making a Bad Situation Worse: Manure Digesters at Mega Dairies in Wisconsin
Data reveals a 58% increase in dairy herd sizes on farms with manure digesters in Kewaunee County, where cows outnumber residents 5 to 1. Based on government data and interviews with community members, the report finds that all dairies with digesters in the county significantly increased their herd sizes, generating more air and water pollution and more enteric methane emissions.
Biogas or Bull****? The Deceptive Promise of Manure Biogas as a Methane Solution
The first-of-its-kind analysis casts doubt on a linchpin of the Biden administration’s methane reduction strategy. Co-published by Friends of the Earth and SRAP, the report shows how manure biogas will entrench highly polluting and unjust systems of industrial animal agriculture and fossil fuel energy for decades to come–all for methane reduction benefits that are overstated and insufficient to meet the Biden administration’s climate targets.
The Rap Sheet on Smithfield's Industrial Hog Facilities in Missouri
SRAP reviewed three decades of public records and found that factory farms owned by Smithfield Foods spilled more than 7.3 million gallons of hog waste on land and waterways across Missouri. This report documents those spills, as well as the Missouri Department of Natural Resources' failed regulatory response.
California Cap-and-Trade Program Summary
Despite a history of pollution events and regulatory violations, industrial livestock operations in Wisconsin have benefited from California’s greenhouse gas cap-and-trade program. SRAP’s analysis reveals that CAFOs have received significant public funds for manure-to-energy digesters even though these operations threaten public health and pollute the air, groundwater, and surface waters.
RAP Sheets: Industrial Dairies in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin
These Rap Sheets document hundreds of alarming violations by 16 dairy CAFOs in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, which have created an environmental and public health crisis in the state. The report analyzes 30 years of data collected from state, local, and federal agency records to assess the harmful impact of these operations on local ecology, water quality, and public health. Also documented is the failure of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) to hold violators responsible for the damage inflicted
Right to Farm Laws by State
Right to Farm (RTF) laws are meant to protect the country’s agriculture system by shielding farmers from nuisance lawsuits. However, because aspects of these laws are not clearly defined, or have been written or amended to protect corporate interests, industrial livestock operations are able to use them to continue practices that harm communities and the environment. This map provides an overview of RTF laws by state.
Pew Commission Report on Industrial Farm Animal Production
The most comprehensive analysis of industrial livestock production available, this 2008 report concludes that the system’s negative impacts on public health, the environment, and animal welfare require urgent action, and makes a series of recommendations to mitigate the unacceptable risks.
A 2019 follow-up report by Johns Hopkins University Center for a Livable Future assessed the impact of the Commission’s recommendations, finding negligible progress since the original report was published.
Learn more about the Pew Commission and find additional reports about specific impacts of industrial livestock production on the PCIFAP website.
American Public Health Association CAFO Moratorium (2019)
In 2019, American Public Health Association (APHA) called for a precautionary moratorium on new and expanding concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), citing significant environmental and public health risks, along with serious social and environmental injustices affecting low-income communities and racial and ethnic minority residents. Because existing CAFO regulations fail to protect the environment and human health, APHA recommends extending the moratorium until adequate protections are established.
Factory Farm Nation Report 2020
This Food & Water Watch report describes the dangerous trends of factory farm expansion and increasing consolidation in the meat, poultry, dairy, and egg industries. It details the air, water, and climate change impacts of the 885 billion pounds of manure produced annually by the 1.6 billion animals in our nation’s 25 thousand factory farms.
Living a Nightmare: Animal Factories in Michigan
This short documentary depicts the devastating impact of industrial livestock operations in rural Michigan. Featuring SRAP Field Operations Director and Goldman Environment Prize winner, Lynn Henning, the film addresses the issue from the underreported perspective of the community members most directly impacted by these facilities.
Right to Harm Action Map
Created as a companion tool to the film Right to Harm, this map tells the incredible stories of communities and individuals who are courageously standing up against the egregious damages caused by industrial livestock operations.