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Hardy, high-yield variations of maior crops are the
success story of modern
. . .
genetics, but they
may carry the seeds of their own destruction."
(Text continued from page 19)
called Newcas tle's disease struck
poultry ranches. ' 'The Newcastle
disease situation," warns FAO. "has
worsened in recent years, as a result
of the rapid expansion of intensive
poultry production."
If you think you're not involved,
then consider this: The disease now
threatens the poultry industries of
118 nations, among them France,
Great Britain, the Netherlands,
West Germany, East Germany, the
U.S.S.R. , Greece, India, Israel ,
South Africa, Mexico, Argentina
and Ecuador. Only 22 countries in
the world are free of this poultry
disease.
In the United States, one of tite
areas hardest hit is southern Califor–
nia. The poultry industry tbere was
22
almost destroyed. (Th e accom–
panying photos teU that story.)
Perverting the Env ironme nt
lf
you have never seen a factory
farm for chickens, you may not un–
derstand why such sudden devas–
tation to our food supply can occur.
On a commercial chicken ranch,
birds are kept closely confined -
perhaps two hens to a wire cage
12" x 12" x 14". Automated troughs
cause high-energy feed to ftow by
on one side, and antibiotic-treated
water on the other. The eggs drop
through the bottom onto a wire grid
for easy pickup. In sorne cases, up to
100,000 birds are housed in one
long, low shed.
This e.nvironment creates severa!
problems~For
one, high-energy feed
forces growth and production.
ll
ex–
changes long-range continua! pro–
duction for short-range, high-Level
pr.oduction. Hens in modern laying
plants ·have - an average life-span
shortened to 18 to 24 months. It's
like running a tractor designed for
2,000 rpm operation at 4,000 rpm -
all the time. The tractor is going to
wear out sooner and be more sus–
ceptible to breakdowns.
Newcastle's is a respiratory dis–
ease similar to pneumonia. The dis–
ease is caused by a virus which likes
the environment of the factory farm .
lts effects are immensely increased
by the methods used on commercia l
ranches. As the FAO's
World Ani–
mal Review
put it , "The growth of
the intensive system of poultry pro–
duction has completely cha nged the
VETERINARIAN carries another load
of diseased California chickens to be
destroyed (left). The aftermath is in
photo on opposite page.
Mike Hendrickson
-
Plain Truth Photo
s tructure ... of poultry [produc–
tion] . .. and has created a new set
of ecological factors. Unfortunately,
most of these factors are working
in
favour ofthe virus."
But what about medica! protec–
tion afforded birds in a commercial
flock? Dr. Charles C. Edwards, U.S.
Food and Drug Administ ration
commissioner, reported that an
FOA task force recently discovered
that the use of certain antibiotics
may cause bacteria to become resis–
tant to those antibiotics. l f the " pro–
tected" bird or animal doesn' t build
any natural immunity to the disease
and the disease organism becomes
tolerant of the drug used to control
it, trouble is inevitable.
Of course, vaccines are designed
to provide that " natural" immunity.
But there are problems here, too.
Once a vaccine for a particular dis–
ease
is
used., you are committed to
living with that disease. When a
vaccine is used, the disease is there
to stay because usually the vaccine
is a weakened version of the strain
and is in every bird, animal or
human vaccinated. For this reason,
the United States Department of
Agriculture has refused to use a vac–
cine prepared from Exotic New–
castle's.
rt
has, instead, used one
made from domestic Newcastle's
disease - a common poultry disease
that is much less virulent than the
foreign " Exotic., strain.
On the other hand, England, also
sutfering from the problem, has de–
veloped a new vaccine from Exotic
Newcastle 's and has thus entered a
path of "coex.istence" witb the dis–
ease.
Mult iplying Weaknesses
Another problem in commercial
ftocks is uniformity of weaknesses.
The chickens are all of the same
PLAIN TRUTH
Morct-o
1973
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