CAFO-Confined Animal Feeding Operation

Here is some footage I took in March from one of the farms owned by Amana Farms, Inc. in Amana, Iowa. In our local Hy-Vee grocery stores Amana Beef is king of the butcher counter. Signs boasting "100% Natural Amana Beef" give the impression that this midwest beef is natural, delicious and nutritious. However, there is no mention of grass-fed, pastured, hormone-free, or anything else that puts this beef above the rest in matters of health or ecology. After being denied a tour or visit to see where this "premium" meat came from, I decided to see what I could from the road, at least. This is only a small portion of the Amana cattle; the large feedlots were inaccessible to me.

When I got out of my car, the putrid smell was overwhelming and I found it unbelievable that it was directly across the street from a little neighborhood. Not a blade of grass could be seen where a couple hundred cows walked through piles of manure.   Most of the cows that I witnessed walking seemed to have trouble doing so. The farm's manager, John McGrath, was quoted claiming "The overriding goal of Amana Farms has always been to maintain the 'look of the land' that drew the original settlers of the Amana Society to east-central Iowa in the 1800s." I can't say for sure, but I would bet that cows in Amana used to have grass to eat.

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danielle@fullcirclechild.com