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This letter was received May 28, 2009
EWT FOOD ANIMAL CONCERNS TRUST 411 W. FULLER-TON PARKWAY, #1402W POST OFFICE BOX 14599 CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60614 F May 2009 Dear Friend, One of the images factory farms like to promote is of cows grazing on green pastures. While it's true that beef cattle generally spend the first 80 percent of their lives munching on grass and roaming the range, the next stage of their existence is incredibly inhumane. When they are about 15 months old, cattle are rounded up, shoved onto crowded trailers, and shipped often hundreds of miles to barren feedlots. At the feedlot, the cows are fed corn and other grains to fatten them to market weight. This causes health problems because cows and other ruminant animals are designed to digest a diet of grass and forages, not corn. After five months at the feedlot, the animals are transported to processing plants and ultimately slaughtered for meat. Sadly, the feedlot experience gets worse. Sometimes, in addition to the usual corn and grains, feedlot cows are forced to eat chicken manure. Would you feed animal waste to your dog or cat? Probably not. It's dirty, disgusting and intuitively just seems wrong. Unfortunately, not all animals are so lucky. In areas of the United States where cattle and poultry operations coexist, poultry waste (or, more accurately, "poultry litter") is routinely fed to cows. This practice places both cow and human health at risk and we want it stopped. Poultry litter consists primarily of manure, feathers, spilled feed and bedding material that accumulate on the floors of the buildings that house chickens and turkeys. It can contain disease-causing bacteria, antibiotics, toxic heavy metals, feed ingredients normally prohibited for cattle, and even foreign objects such as dead rodents, rocks, nails and glass. Surprisingly, this unhealthy and inhumane practice is legal and poorly monitored @ creating unacceptable risks to human and animal health. Poultry waste can also lead to illnesses in the people who eventually consume the contaminated beef. Health threats include the spread of Mad Cow Disease and related neurological diseases, the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria, and the potential for exposure to toxic substances and disease-causing bacteria. For more information on the threats to human and cattle health, please refer to the enclosed insert. Over the past year, we have spent countless hours reviewing scientific studies to better understand the extent of these threats. What we found was astounding. For instance, even though it can spread Mad Cow Disease, the practice of feeding poultry litter to cattle continues today without adequate governmental surveillance or regulation. It is unclear how much is being fed and if it is being properly processed to reduce the associated health risks. With so much at stake, the federal government no longer can afford to turn a blind eye to the dangers posed by filthy cattle feed. FACT is committed to ending this inhumane, unhealthy and dangerous practice! I write to you now asking for your financial support to help launch FACT'S Filthy Feed Campaign. The campaign's goal is to cause the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban this risky practice. We will soon be filing a petition with the FDA laying out our case for why feeding poultry litter to cows should not be allowed. In the months ahead you will be able to take action and make a difference in the lives of these farm animals. We will ask you to write letters to policy makers in support of FACT'S upcoming petition and make your voice heard. Check out our Filthy Feed Campaign website at www.filthyfeed.org. We are up against strong forces within agribusiness that prioritize profit over safety. FACT is committed to protecting the health of animals and consumers but we can't do so alone. Please support our efforts! We at FACT are deeply grateful for all that our supporters do to make farms better places for food animals. Please donate today. Thank you again for your generosity. Sincerely, Richard Wood Executive Director P.S. Our ability to continue working on behalf of farm animals is made possible by the kindness of people like you. Your gift will enable a healthier and more humane future for cows, pigs and chickens. For more information, please contact us or visit our website at www.foodanimalconcems.org This stationery is printed on recycled paper PHONE (773) 525-4952 FAX (773) 525-5226 bbb.org/charity |
