Genoways, Ted

Examines the meat packing industry, particularly pork, and discusses how the demand for increased production has had an impact on the cost to animals, humans, and the environment.

"The family farm lies at the heart of our national identity, and yet its future is in peril. Rick Hammond grew up on a farm, and for forty years he has raised cattle and crops on his wife's fifth-generation homestead in Nebraska, in hopes of passing it on to their four children. But as the handoff nears, their small family farm--and their entire way of life--are under siege. Beyond the threat posed by rising corporate ownership of land and livestock, the Hammonds are confronted by encroaching pipelines, groundwater depletion, climate change, and shifting trade policies. Add GMOs, pesticides, and fossil fuel pollution to their list of troubles and the question is: can the family farm survive in America?"--Jacket flap.

Draws on interviews with line workers, hog farmers, union leaders, politicians, and activists to examine the history of food production in American meat-processing plants, with an emphasis on the production of Spam, and discusses how a focus on maintaining the production chain's speed has lead to increased accidents, unsafe food, and inhumane conditions.