The beginnings of factory farms date back to the Industrial Revolution, and in 1904 Upton Sinclair famously went undercover as a worker in a Chicago meat processing plant, revealing the abysmal working conditions and repulsive practices around meat — the resulting expose was his famous 1906 novel “The Jungle.” Although this prompted new regulations on food safety, the rise of factory-like facilities pumping out meat products was still to come. The main driver: McDonalds.
Many drive-in restaurants boomed in the 1930s, but as detailed in the documentary “Food, Inc.,” McDonalds was unique because it could make food extremely cheaply and consistently. They achieved this by running their restaurants like factories, with assembly lines of unskilled workers making the exact same meals over and over again. This allowed them to pay workers far less than other restaurants. Today, McDonalds buys more ground beef than any other company in the U.S.
To support the ever-growing fast food industry, meat (and most other food) production became controlled by just a few massive corporations rather than individual local farms. These corporations formed to produce the massive quantity of food needed at the prices fast food companies demand, but today, the vast majority of available meat anywhere, from restaurants to supermarket shelves, comes from them. To produce so much meat so cheaply, quality, ethical standards, and sometimes food safety, are sacrificed.
