Animal Welfare Is Improving, No Thanks to Activists
Technology is already making lives better for many farm animals, and further improvements could be imminent.
What do they have to say about tuna fishing nets?
Photographer: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images North AmericaIn recent years, progress in protecting the welfare of animals has been mostly stuck. The percentage of vegetarians or vegans in the US has been stable for decades. Meanwhile, as people become wealthier, they typically eat more meat, and countries tend to move toward factory-farming methods as their economies develop. From the point of view of many animal welfare advocates, this leads to an increase in the unacceptable treatment of farm animals that are both intelligent and can suffer, such as chickens and pigs.
There is, however, some better news on the animal welfare front. The cause is on the verge of some major victories — and they have been earned through technology rather than rhetoric.