It probably isn’t news to anyone that animal rights activists are well-versed in using the legal system in their quest to damage (and ultimately end) animal agriculture and meat consumption, as we’ve seen many legislative efforts aimed at making production more costly and less efficient (such as California’s Prop 12) as well as the recent round of nuisance lawsuits targeting hog farms in North Carolina.

In order to better understand these tactics and inform our members about what might be coming next, the Animal Ag Alliance sent representatives to the Animal Law Conference (held virtually this year) for the first time. The conference was hosted by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, an animal rights activist organization known for “filing high-impact lawsuits to protect animals from harm.” If you’re wondering about the conference organizers’ stance on meat, note that per the “sustainability policy,” “all food and beverage items served at the event [when it is held in person] are 100% plant-based.”

Key themes at the conference included claims that animal agriculture is a leading contributor to climate change, alleging that “factory farms” will cause future pandemics and negativity toward large-scale animal agriculture, including statements about its proclaimed impacts on rural communities. Speakers included staff members from ALDF along with representatives of other activist organizations such as Public Justice, North Carolina Environmental Justice Network, Food & Water Watch and ASPCA. Lewis & Clark Law School’s Center for Animal Law Studies was also well-represented on the speaker roster, as they co-hosted the conference. Jonathan Safran Foer, author of Eating Animals and We Are the Weather: Saving the Planet Begins at Breakfast, was also on hand to share his viewpoints on animal agriculture and the environment along with calling for reducing the consumption of animal products.

I’ll let the speakers’ own words speak for themselves…

“These animals as many of you know are subject to really near-unimaginable cruelty. Intensive confinement, mutilations, horrible living environments — dirty, unsanitary living environments, inhumane transport … and finally, painful slaughter. And these animals receive some of the fewest legal protections of any animals on the planet. They are often exempted from state animal cruelty laws. And even when they are covered, enforcement of those laws is often very minimal.”
“Over a 15-year period from 1997 to 2012, the average dairy grew 50% larger, the average hog farm grew nearly 70% larger, the number of what they call broiler chickens, or meat chickens, on factory farms rose to over 1 billion, and the average egg-laying operation grew 74% larger, so this industry is growing at a rapid pace. And along with that, expectedly, the emissions from the industry are rising as well. So, unlike many industries, livestock sector emissions are expected to continue increasing for decades, even while other sectors have to dramatically decrease their emissions to meet global climate targets. And what that means is that the industry's share of global emissions is going to become increasingly significant.”
“Factory farms are horrible places, and they cause immense suffering in animals. And by causing animals to suffer, we cause ourselves to suffer. When you eat meat, eggs and dairy, you're eating something that is teeming with bacteria like E. coli and salmonella. And the very drugs we rely on to combat these bacteria are being fed into these animals constantly.”
“The use of animals for human consumption and the environmental and public health impacts from factory farming are all major drivers of pandemic risk.”
“Why did Trump deem meat so essential that he forced workers at meat plants who didn't want to work, to work? They didn't want to work because it's already the most unsafe profession in the country, and during the pandemic, the largest meat plants became the largest hotspots for [COVID-19].”
“96% of Americans think that animals deserve legal protection from cruelty. If you can think of anything else that many Americans agree on, I would love to hear about it. So, the question is, how do we achieve those goals that we all share? Will it be through changing of identities? Will it be through a changing of habits? Will it be incremental, or will it happen in leaps? And I don't know, if you were to ask me what are the odds that half of Americans will be vegetarian in five years — my guess is zero. If you were to ask me what are the odds that half of the meals eaten in America will be vegetarian in five years — I think there's a very real chance of that.”

I hope your company has some good attorneys on staff to prepare for ongoing legal challenges posed by activist organizations. Unfortunately, as these quotes demonstrate, simply being in the business of meat production makes you a target.

Activists discuss legal strategies to target meat and animal ag

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