A concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO – better known as a factory farm – is a facility where large numbers of animals are raised in confined, cramped conditions. A few decades ago, CAFOs were very uncommon. Today, the vast majority of farm animals in the U.S. are raised in CAFOs. Over the course of this four-part series, we’ll learn about how factory farms took over the American agriculture system, what effect they’ve had on rural communities in the Midwest, and we’ll meet some of the farmers, advocates and rural organizers fighting against them as part of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. How to Fight a Factory Farm is produced by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, a member of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. This feed also includes IATP’s two previous podcast series, Uprooted: Talking COP27 and The Farm Bill Uprooted.
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A concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO – better known as a factory farm – is a facility where large numbers of animals are raised in confined, cramped conditions. A few decades ago, CAFOs were very uncommon. Today, the vast majority of farm animals in the U.S. are raised in CAFOs. Over the course of this four-part series, we’ll learn about how factory farms took over the American agriculture system, what effect they’ve had on rural communities in the Midwest, and we’ll meet some of the farmers, advocates and rural organizers fighting against them as part of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. How to Fight a Factory Farm is produced by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, a member of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. This feed also includes IATP’s two previous podcast series, Uprooted: Talking COP27 and The Farm Bill Uprooted.
Despite the well-documented harms to the environment and rural economies, the CAFO system continues to expand. But its growth is not inevitable. In South Dakota, Iowa and all across factory farm country, everyday people are stepping up and organizing their neighbors to prevent factory farms from being built in their communities. How to fight a factory farm? People power.
In this episode, hear from Vanessa Namken and Frank James of Dakota Rural Action and Barb Kalbach and Hugh Espey of Iowa CCI on how they successfully stopped CAFOs from being built near their homes.
How to Fight a Factory Farm is produced by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, a member of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. Thank you to our intern, Anna Karns, for her assistance producing this series, and to Noah Earle for the use of his song “Fry an Egg” for our theme music. Learn more about the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment at fightfactoryfarms.org.
References and further reading
"13 Groups Sued EPA Demanding Stricter CAFO Regulation — the Court Struck Them Down." Sentient Media, October 2024.
Pounds of manure produced by dairy cows: University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine
"A mega-dairy is transforming Arizona’s aquifer and farming lifestyles." High Country News, August 2021
How to Fight a Factory Farm
A concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO – better known as a factory farm – is a facility where large numbers of animals are raised in confined, cramped conditions. A few decades ago, CAFOs were very uncommon. Today, the vast majority of farm animals in the U.S. are raised in CAFOs. Over the course of this four-part series, we’ll learn about how factory farms took over the American agriculture system, what effect they’ve had on rural communities in the Midwest, and we’ll meet some of the farmers, advocates and rural organizers fighting against them as part of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. How to Fight a Factory Farm is produced by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, a member of the Campaign for Family Farms and the Environment. This feed also includes IATP’s two previous podcast series, Uprooted: Talking COP27 and The Farm Bill Uprooted.
