What are Livestock Waste?

Meat has been part of our daily diet. Even with vegetables, we often mixed them with meat for a tastier blend. But have we asked ourselves, where the meat in our table would come from? Is it processed in the right conditions in an organic environment and fed with organic foods? Did the companies dispose their animal’s wastes properly? These are the questions that we should ponder while buying our meat supply in the market. We should remember that it is food that we are talking here that matters most to our health.

There has been so much news on TV about diseases that we can get from contaminated meat like Mad Cow’s Disease, Bird’s Flu, the Foot and Mouth Disease and the Ebola virus. We may think that rare bacteria and viruses have been the causes of these diseases but if we look at it, our food handling and the kind of environment where the pets grow could also be factors that lead to these diseases. The living environment of pets really matters. Companies should invest money to implement strict sanitation standards including waste disposal of these pets. It is assumed that if pets are for commercial uses, they are fed with inorganic feeds and vitamins to make them gain weight faster. Can you imagine how foul the odor of their wastes would be if they are fed with inorganic foods? People who are living near animal farms can testify the smell. One can even detect chicken dung even from a few miles away.

We should think of these considerations in buying meat. As much as possible, we should buy meat grown by local farmers where we can actually see where they grow them and what foods do they feed everyday. With regards to the standards of waste disposal in animal farms, the best thing we can do is to report them to authorities so that proper sanctions will be imposed on them. If you think the company is too powerful, then joining a pro-environment group or forum could also help.