Life's Not Fair (American Farmer Edition)

Have you found yourself saying "It's not fair" more frequently? I can distinctly remember being very young and telling my dad "it's not fair," to which he would reply, "Life's not fair." At the time, I thought that he was just taking my sisters side or saying that because he didn't want me to have whatever I was asking for. However, now I've really come to realize that he wasn't just saying that, he truly meant it. Life isn't fair, it's not fair that some people work for their whole lives and still have nothing to show for it. It's not fair that some children have one parent while their classmate has two. And it certainly isn't fair that life chews people up and spits them out for fun. 

I've recently noticed that I've been thinking that life isn't fair lately, and it isn't. Farmers are having to euthanize full barns of hogs because they have no where to send the animals to be slaughtered for the food supply chain. They're having to abort their sows because they have nowhere to send the piglets. I saw a photo today of a young man piling dead hogs outside of his barn because they had to euthanize every single one. And why are farmers euthanizing their hogs? This is a very simple answer, with packing plant closures and plants having reduced kill capacity, there is nowhere for the fat hogs to go. The hogs can't stay in the barns because even on a maintenance diet (a diet that they are fed to stay alive rather that to continue putting on weight) the animals will grow to large. Packing plants are designed to only take in animals below a certain weight, if an animal is to big, it will be rejected at the plant because the line cannot withstand an animal that is much larger than it is designed for. In the simplest of terms, that's why hog producers are being forced to euthanize their market hog herd. Closed plants equal to many live hogs. In regards to the abortion of gestating piglets, farrowing facilities don't have enough room to continue to produce baby pigs. Farm workers are being faced with the task of giving each sow and gilt a shot to abort their pigs inside. Let me make this clear, this is not the farmers fault and the farmers are not doing this by choice. So, what happens when producers aren't stocking their hog barns? Agriculture workers get laid off at record amounts. Now, I don't just mean the people working in the barns, I mean the truckers that move the pigs, the men and women producing the feed at the local co-op for the pigs, and so many others. The hog business is a hard business to make a living in to begin with, then add the repercussions of the Coronavirus. It isn't just the hogs owned by the packing plants that are being euthanized, it's your neighbors herd of 25 pigs that feed his family, it's the young girls show pig that isn't going to see the show ring this year, it's the 150 head of finisher pigs owned by a farmer just starting out and trying to keep his family afloat.

Now, lets talk about my pride and joy, cattle. Cattle farmers and ranchers are shipping their fat cattle off and getting a check of $0 in return. They're watching the cattle pot haul off the cows that they took loans out on to buy. Farmers are being advised to depopulate their herds. They are being forced to euthanize their fat cattle because packing plants are closed. So, why don't the farmers just keep their fat cattle until this is all over? Cattlemen cant keep their cattle for the same reason that hog producers cant keep their hogs. Packing plants are only built to withstand a certain amount of weight on their carcass lines. And while our packing plant right here at home are closed, the first shipment of imported beef from a county in Africa arrived this week. The American farmers and ranchers, the people who have been feeding this country for centuries are going under and we're buying beef from other countries. We're letting the American farmers and ranchers suffer and be hung out to dry because we aren't eating their beef. Beef is being imported from other countries, yet farmers and ranchers right here at home are being told to euthanize their herds. Our American farmers and ranchers are going under because they are being advised to destroy their livelihoods, the livestock that has been feeding not only their families, but your families too. Now, being a livestock farmer is a tough job to have regardless of the time or situation. Life rarely goes your way and the work is never done. But at this very moment, the only thing that has been keeping the farm families alive are now being killed, burned and buried. That is the harsh and sad truth. 

And now the poultry, millions of chickens are being euthanized across the country. Egg processing plants are being shut down. The chickens are humanely euthanized and brought to rendering plants, again forcing the producer to lose their source of income. Processing plants are being closed due to staff shortages, leaving producers with no other choice than to euthanize their birds. This paints a similar picture to the pile of hogs outside of the building that I referenced earlier. As a reminder, it wasn't that long ago that poultry producers were forced to depopulate their flocks due to the 2015 bird flu. With restaurant closures, there is not the same need for egg production. Liquid eggs are not being transported to restaurants like McDonald's and Burger King, truck drivers hauling the eggs are running out of work with the decline in egg production and farm workers are being laid off due to the lack of care-taking responsibilities.  The suffering is being seen throughout the agriculture industry, not just in one species.

Americans were going hungry before this crisis, and now packing plants are shut down and meat isn't being restocked on the shelves. People will be going hungry even more quickly with the loss of livestock production due to the increase in herd depopulation. Euthanizing our livestock is a last resort, we don't want to do this. The only way we can keep this from happening is by keeping our processing plants open and buying meat directly from the producer. The suicide rate in farmers has steadily been increasing over the past few years, this major loss in production is only going to make these rates go up. Farmers and ranchers are suffering major losses, depression is beginning to run through the industry and producers are looking for a way to keep their farms when this is all over. My plea to you is to support your local farmers, buy their beef, pork, chicken, eggs, and milk. Help the farmers and their families to stay above water during these unpredictable times. Help us keep the American farm family alive, agriculturalists are counting on you to do your part.