The consumption of meat is massive globally.

In 2003, about 46 billion animals are slaughtered which was about seven times the human population (Blatt, 2008). This means every second, one thousand four hundred animals were killed. Clearly, we can see most of the people like to eat animal meat and the animals are born for the purpose to be served on the dining room. In order to meet the population's growing demand for meat, factory farming has taken place and it transforms the raising of farm animals (Blatt, 2008). This has brought out the issue of welfare to the animals in the factory farms. In this paper, I am attempting to discuss the moral concerns of eating meat though the practices of factory farming, how their practices have degraded farm animals lives and affect our moral permissibility to eat meat. I will defend the moral permissibility to eat meat with the discussion of the changed farm practices that have taken care of the animal welfares. In order to have meat, we need to raise and kill the animals. The high demand for meat with competitive price for the consumers has driven the farms into factory assembly-like operation to produce livestock, commonly known as factory farm. To keep up with the production, the farm operators had to use all means to keep the animals growing big and healthy. In the running of these production processes, there are numerous reports of bad treatment to the animals' lives in the farm.

In America, chickens are raised on factory farms to increase productivity. Chicks can be raise to required size within forty-one days and ready to send for the slaughterhouse by injecting a nutrient solution in the eggs three days before hatching (Blatt, 2008). This method saves a lot of money for the farmers, but the chicks may be unable to handle their overgrown bodies within such a short period. Factory farms contain thousands of chickens living together and they are treated as food producing objects. They are "caged, crowded, deprived, drugged,

mutilated and smothered" since birth and raising massive chickens indoor causes the spread of disease easy and antibiotics are used to solve the issue 1940s (Blatted, 2008). Antibiotics are administered to stimulate growth of the chickens and the undesired outcome is that diseasecausing bacteria are more resistant to drugs. This will threaten human lives as the effectiveness of antibiotics to combat diseases diminishes (Blatt, 2008). In recent years, the spread of H5N1 bird flu is believed to be caused by the crowded and unclean conditions of the heavily populated farms (Blatts, 2008). Farm hens are breed for production of eggs rapidly, but they are put in wired cages to lay eggs with limited mobility (Singer, 2006). When they ceased to be superlayers, these hens are sent for slaughterhouse (Blatt, 2008).

Feedlot cattle are fed with grains and protein concentrates to increase their weight and produce (Blatt, 2008). They too are fed with steroids and hormones to enhance growth. Veal from newborn calves is produced by separating them from their mothers and restricting their movements in a narrow pen for three to eighteen weeks (Blatt, 2008). In the milking production, cows have developed leg and foot problems as they have to endure standing on cement for automated milking for years (Blatt, 2008). They too are sent for slaughter after their milk production drops (Blatt, 2008).

Pigs are facing the same poor treatment from factory farming. They are kept in the gestation crates which limited their mobility. This means feeding, urinating and defecating are fixed in the crates (Blatted, 2008). This is especially stressful during their pregnancies as the narrow crates disallow the pigs to move around (Singer, 2006). Studies have shown that crated pigs were showing severe depression and mental illness (Blatt, 2008). To prevent the outbreak of disease and simulate growth the pigs are likewise fed with huge amount of antibiotics (Blatt, 2008).

We can see factory farm is intended to raise a huge quantity of animals with required weight within a short time to meet the high consumers demand. Farm animals sole purpose is live and dies and get serve on the dining table. Based on the practices of the factory farm, the moral concern lies mainly in the cruel means of production that have caused animals to die in suffering. To justify our moral permissibility to eat meat, we have to change the practices the animals are raised in the farm.

Fortunately, upon knowing the adverse conditions the animals were suffering, the consumers and animal activists voiced out their concerns aggressively and have effected changes to the farming methods. In mid-2004, the egg industry introduced the animal care guidelines to ensure the chickens' comfort, health and safety (Blatt, 2008). Participating producers who adhere to the standards will be given the animal care certification and allow to print the certification's logo on their cartons (Blatt, 2008). Others like the McDonald's hamburger chain has reacted by giving preference to suppliers who improved the hen's living condition with bigger space, prohibited suppliers to use antibiotics to promote growth(Blatt, 2008). Burger King too have hired specialist to research and devise new standards to improve animal welfare (Blatt, 2008). With some of the largest buyers' decision to change its standard on their purchases, other meat producers will likely to follow the changes required to meet buyers' requirement (Blatt, 2008).

On responding to the appropriate treatment of cattle, there is increasing number of organic cattle in America (Blatt, 2008). Under United State Department of Agricultures (USDA) livestock standards, organic beef and dairy cows are prohibited from using antibiotics, hormones and others modifications to control growth (Blatt, 2008). Also, these livestock must maintain regular roaming activities and an organic pasture to graze on (Blatt, 2008). From these

changes, we can see the suppliers and buyers are addressing the concerns and expect more measures to be carried out in the future.

From a Utilitarian view, one should choose the alternative choices and their likely consequences for the interest of all those who will be directly affected by them (Zeuschner, 2010). From the treatment of chickens in factory farms, the animals feel pain and are suffering before sending to the slaughterhouse. As such, Utilitarian will prefer consumers to adopt a vegan lifestyle as an alternative to remain healthy as studies have shown that being vegetarian benefits one's health like increasing longevity, reducing many chronic sicknesses and (Corliss, 2002). This argument may be true if their produced are treated and processed properly. Pesticides are heavily used to control pests and bacterial diseases which in return will see a high fruit quality and yields (Blatt, 2008). The pesticide contamination on vegetables and fruits have cause many consumers and agricultural workers to fall sick (Blatt, 2008). Apples are one of the instances where many of the poisons on their skins cannot be easily removed and they are on sale in the supermarket. It was stated that two-third of Americans supermarket are filled with genetically modified (GM) soy, corn and fruits (Blatt, 2008). Some of the GM food are genetically modified to resist frost, pest, enhance growth and production. GM production may cause loss of biodiversity and is likely to cause the certain animals that live near or in the soil to starve and die. The possibility of side effects from long term consumption was cautioned. Yet, consumers are unable to exercise their choices as GM foods do not require detailed labelling under FDA ruled that GM foods are the same as conventional products (Blatt, 2008). From the ways these crops are produced with poison or modified, Utilitarian should look into the amount of suffering it has bring to those who have directly affected by it. It was stated pregnant women can meet the nutrient and energy needs with well-planned vegetarian diets (American Dietetic Association,

2009). However, I would like to point out man is not a natural vegetarian but by choice. To keep up with a planned vegetarian diets require disciplines and it is not easy for pregnancy women to keep as they have to face their physical and emotional needs.

From Confucius' theory, the factory farm owners are the petty who understand what is profitable (Dan, 2006).The motivation for practicing a system that treated animals cruelly in the factory farm processes contain selfish behaviours as these farmers are greedy for immediate gain from the shortcuts. As such, one must refuse to support the eating meat from unethical causes by the petty as their characters are not virtuous (de) and their behaviour is morally wrong. We are to keep ourselves away from these petty. On knowing the unethical treatments, there are companies and suppliers who initiate changes to improve and maintain animal welfare in their production for meat. Confucius calls these people junzi as they respect morality and show benevolence to animals when they provide better living conditions for them; an application of the Silver Rule. In this manner, eating meat produced by junzi is considered morally permissible as they did not drift away from the right path when seeking personal gain. (1509 words)

References American Dietetic Association . (2009) Vegetarian Diets. Eat Right . Journal of the American Dietetic Association. Retrieved from March 30, 2012 from http://www.eatright.org/about/content.aspx?id=8357 Blatt, Harvey. (2008). America's Food: What You Don't Know About What You Eat. London: The MIT Press. Corliss, Richard. (2002). Should We All Be Vegetarians?, TIME Magazine. Retrieve http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1002888-1,00.html Dan, Yu. (2006). Confucius From The Heart: Ancient Wisdom for Today's World. New York : Atria Books Singer, Peter. (2006). The Ethics of Eating. Project Syndicate. Retrieved from March 30, 2012 from http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/singer12/EnglishB Zeuschner, R. B. (2010). Classical Ethics: East and West (1st ed.). The McGraw-Hill Companies.