John,

Massive meat and poultry companies are gaming the system when it comes to the environmental impact of meat production.

Many meat and poultry companies own the animals that are raised on factory farms, but they take no responsibility for the waste that these animals produce. Instead, waste management and disposal are left to the overburdened contract growers.¹

Essentially, the farmers end up with all of the liability while huge multinational corporations end up with all of the profits.

This system is unfair. Tell your Representative to stop big meat and poultry from wrongly burdening farmers.

Federal officials have long been aware of the pressing pollution problem that industrial-scale animal agriculture brings to our waterways. The Clean Water Act has managed to improve the quality of our waterways by holding a number of industries responsible for their waste — except, that is, industrial agriculture.

Representatives Ro Khanna (CA-17) and Mark Pocan (WI-02) introduced a bill in the House of Representatives called the Farmer Fairness Act. This bill would extend environmental liability for water pollution, under the Clean Water Act, to big meat and poultry companies so that the contract farmers aren’t the only ones responsible for pollution and clean-up.²

This legislation levels the playing field for farmers when they deal with the Big Ag companies that utilize their services. The Farmer Fairness Act would be a considerable first step toward knocking out the subsidies that the factory farm system relies on.

Let's pass the Farmer Fairness Act. Send a message to your Representative calling on them to cosponsor this critical bill!

Onward together,

Wenonah Hauter
Founder and Executive Director
Food & Water Watch

1. Poultry Litter Management Act, Food & Water Watch, January 2016.
2. Reps. Khanna, Pocan Introduce Bill to Finally Force Ag Companies to Take Responsibility for Their Own Waste, Food & Water Watch, July 18, 2019.