The Meat Racket: The Secret Takeover of America’s Food Business

It is distressful to consider the short unhappy lives of factory farmed animals. It is equally distressing to read that major producers have developed monopolistic control of the food we eat. The number of producers has shrunk, leaving food in control of major corporations. The corporations have an array of brands, but eighty-five per cent of all chicken sold is only supplied by four corporations. These corporations buy from farmers at prices set by the corporation and sell at whatever profit they can. Luckily, people are becoming more aware of the overcrowded farm conditions leading to pestilence in those suffering animals. In much the same way as Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel, The Jungle shed a light on the meat packing industry, this book shows the practices of chicken and hog producer, Tyson, and the power that this agribusiness wields. Caught in the system are farmers who work tirelessly to produce Tyson’s product without any guarantee of profit or support. When disease strikes, the farmer is left to fend for themselves, often with bankruptcy as a result. If there were more competition, the farmers would have options that are unavailable since the mergers of mega corporations.