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Pork is literally being produced behind closed doors. For those of us living in cities, all that can be witnessed is that final product of vacuum-packed bacon or tightly-sealed marshmallows. For those living in the rural areas, the story is much different. Communities are faced with the odour that emanates from massive hog factories; they are subject to the tonnes of liquid manure that ends up in nearby lagoons and is sprayed on neighbouring fields; and many are concerned about the cleanliness of their water sources and air. A large percentage of antibiotics produced in this country end up in the bellies of farm animals; where do the antibiotics go, and what implications does this incredible use of drugs have on human and animal health? Much concern has also been raised as to the well-being of sows (breeder pigs) that spend almost their entire lives in stalls almost no larger than themselves.

Join Deconstructing Dinner as we take a closer look into industrial hog production and discover whether viable alternatives exist.

Guests

Shiv Chopra - was the Senior Veterinary Drug Evaluator in Health Canada's Therapeutic Products and Food Division. Chopra was fired in 2004 along with 2 other colleagues after serving 28 years with the department. Chopra had raised issues such as the safety of a bovine growth hormone proposed for use in dairy herds to boost milk production, the influence of corporations in government drug approvals, and the need to keep animal parts out of the feed supply to keep animals safe.

Vicki Burns - Executive Director, Winnipeg Humane Society - The WHS coordinates the Quit Stalling Campaign - designed to end the use of sow stalls in Canada by 2013. Sows are breeder pigs, which, in hog factories, are kept in metal stalls barely larger than themselves.

Elaine Hughes - Stop the Hogs Coalition - is a group of concerned ratepayers of the Regional Municipalities of Barrier Valley and Ponass Lake, Saskatchewan, that are concerned about the environmental and social implications of the 'factory' production of hogs. Elaine is on the Steering Committee of the Beyond Factory Farming Coalition.

Barbara Schellenberg - Rafter 25 Ranch - Located on the ranch in Alexis Creek, BC is Pasture-to-Plate - raising pork, beef and lamb using biodynamic principles of farming. These principles ensure a mutual respect with the land, and the farm undertakes a number of conservation projects. Animals are allowed to practice instinctive practices with little restriction.

Musical Selection (name/title/album/label)
Theme/Soundclips: - Adham Shaikh, Infusion, Fusion, Sonic Turtle (CDN)
Soundclip 2 - James Asher, Star of Madras, East Westercism Vol.3, Law and Auder

• Health Canada
• Winnipeg Humane Society
• Quit Stalling Campaign
• Stop the Hogs Coalition
• Stop the Stink (NEW)
• Beyond Factory Farming Coalition
• Pasture-to-Plate Meats
• Hogs in BC
• GRACE Factory Farm Project
• Eat Well Guide
• Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals
• Manitoba Pork Council
• Canadian Pork Council
• Saskatchewan Pork Council
• The Price We Pay for Corporate Hogs
• Manitoba Livestock Manure Management
• ManureNet
• Sustainable Table - Issues
• Hogwatch Manitoba

Where Do You Find Pig Products?

• "Everything but the Oink!" - Manitoba Pork Council

Articles/Reports/Documents
some links require Adobe Reader

• "Why Manitoba Must Quit Stalling" - The Aquarian, Vicki Burns
• "Hog Wild" - The Aquarian, Syd Baumel
• "Hogs victims of surge in production" - Winnipeg Free Press, John Youngman
• "2005 Report of the Commisioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development" - Environmental Petitions, Impacts of Hog Farming, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
• "European Union bans antibiotics for growth promotion" - Union of Concerned Scientists
• "Hogging It!: Estimates of Antimicrobial Abuse in Livestock" - Union of Concerned Scientists
• "Pork Powerhouses 2005" - Largest Pork Producers in the US and Canada, Successful Farming
• FACT SHEET: Intensive Livestock Operations and Water - Beyond Factory Farming (Compiled by Elaine Hughes)
• "It's Hitting The Fan" - The Unchecked Growth of Factory Farming in Canada, Environmental Defense Canada
• "Putting Factory Farms to the Test" - A Guide to Community-based Water Monitoring, Environmental Defense Canada
• "Living in a Sea of Cheap Grain" - The corporate conversion of Saskatchewan's hog production policy, Cathy Holtslander
• "Facts About Our Food" - Sow Stalls, Canadian Coaltion for Farm Animals
• "Analysis of Intensive Hog Farming in Quebec" - McGill University
• "Brandon University Scientist and Environmentalists Urge Manitoba Government to protect groundwater drinking sources"
• "More Waters Test Positive for Drugs" - Science News, Janet Raloff
• "Livestock Confinement Dust And Gases" - Iowa Stae University
• Occurrence and Diversity of Tetracycline Resistance Genes in Lagoons and Groundwater Underlying Two Swine Production Facilities" - American Society for Microbiology
• "The Effects of Hog Mega-Barns on Communities, the Environment, and Independent Hog Producers" - National Farmers Union
• "The Rise of Antibiotic-Resistant Infections" - U.S. FDA

  Mentioned during the broadcast
  

• "The Dirt on Pigs and the Environment" - Manitoba Pork Council
• "Pork Industry Environmental Impact Facts" - Industry Canada, SchoolNet

Video

"The Meatrix" - great animated short produced by The GRACE Factory Farm Project

Images

• Photos of Factory Hog Production - GRACE Factory Farm Project

Farms/Sustainable Meats

• First Nature Farms - Goodale, AB
• Eat Well Guide