Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing

I. INTRODUCTION Henteleff) and a panel of six commissioners (Christine Common-Singh, Celia The Citizens’ Hearing on Hog Production Guilford, Roderick Macdonald, W.J. and the Environment was held in Turnock, John Welsted, and Kay Wotton). Brandon, 29-31 October 1999, to examine A wide range of groups and individu- the environmental, economic, social, and als were invited to make presentations, public health aspects surrounding indus- including First Nations, academics, farm- trial scale hog production and processing, ers, farm organizations, industry, govern- using the experience of other jurisdictions ment (municipal, provincial, federal), in North America. This hearing arose non-governmental organizations, and an from a dissatisfaction felt by some citizens open invitation was extended to con- about the decision by the Government of cerned citizens. There were 29 presenta- Manitoba to grant a license to Maple Leaf tions (23 scheduled and 6 non-scheduled) Meats (MLM) for a large hog-processing (Appendix A). After each presentation the plant in Brandon (which started operation floor was open for questions, first from in 1999) without convening Clean Envi- the commissioners and then from the au- ronment Commission hearings. This lack dience. All the proceedings were recorded of public hearings seemed to ignore the and a transcript was made. In addition, concerns of those people who had doubts many of the presenters and other indi- about the advisability and sustainability viduals and groups provided copies of of large-scale hog operations in Manitoba. documents, and references to other perti- Subsequently, some citizens of southwest nent information. Information on how to Manitoba, spearheaded by the Sierra Club see the “Transcript” and the “References Prairie Chapter and the Westman Action to Documents” is given in Appendix A. Coalition, decided to organize this Citi- The five commissioners who wrote this zens’ Hearing in an attempt to compen- report based it on the transcript, and the sate for the lack of such an activity before documents and references, as well as their the licenses were granted. To ensure fair- notes from the Citizens’ Hearing. This ness in the hearings, the organizers ar- hearing, unlike more formal hearings con- ranged for the hearings to be presided ducted by a governmental body, could not over by an independent Chair (Yude compel testimony. Many of the invited

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 1 groups/individuals responded, but not, ity increases, sales of lower-priced unfortunately, the City of Brandon or homes are brisk, and there is a small MLM, so we did not get direct informa- demand for higher-priced homes. tion from the proponents. Other informa- • Once a plant is in operation, demand tion was examined by the commissioners for consumer goods and entertain- in preparing this report in an attempt to ment, particularly in the lower-price provide a balanced view. Limited re- range, increases. Demand for low-cost sources prevented us from presenting a rental housing exceeds supply. Rev- complete analysis of the benefits and im- enue from commercial and residential pacts of the anticipated massive increase property, and from service fees, par- in hog production in Manitoba. Such an ticularly if the new plant is paying its analysis is needed, and we hope that our full and reasonable share, increases. limited examination will provide the in- • The majority of the jobs are relatively centive for a full, formal, and public evalu- low-paid, difficult and dangerous, ation of this development. leading to high turnover. The This report has been organized into workforce for these jobs tend to be categories corresponding to major areas highly mobile, young, and often immi- of concern about the hog production and grants or visible minorities. processing industries. These categories • The processing plant uses large are not mutually exclusive, and each amounts of water and discharges liq- should be considered as a lens through uid wastes containing coliform bacte- which the writers view a subject area, ria, disease organisms, and plant nu- bringing a different focus and perspective trients. These contaminants may be to each category. difficult to remove in standard waste- treatment plants and have caused the II. SUMMARY CONCLUSIONS deterioration of waters into which they were discharged. If the plant has been The relationship between large-scale meat excused from full service rates, the cost processing plants that have been estab- of operation and of any upgrading of lished in North America during the past the facility will be borne by other cus- 20 years and their host communities have tomers or the government; that is, ulti- had the following characteristics: mately, by other businesses, residents • The large, often multinational corpo- and taxpayers in general. rations owning these processing plants • The processing plants have tended to have greater power than most of the depress the price of hogs by vertical jurisdictions with whom they negoti- integration into large hog-production ate, and have used this power to get enterprises, by dominating the market financial and other concessions from for hogs, and by buying from inde- the community in return for bringing pendent producers only by contract. investment and jobs to that community. Many farmers have been forced out of • Initially, during the construction and hog production and even out of farm- early operational phases, local unem- ing. ployment decreases, commercial activ- Family farm hog production, locally

2 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba owned and managed, and using little • The secret “Memorandum of Under- hired help, has been replaced by large- standing” between the Government of scale corporate hog production, which: Manitoba and MLM essentially re- • Injects capital and hires workers for the moved the “go/no-go/modify” op- construction of barns and waste dis- tions without any public airing of the posal systems. costs and benefits of the plant and the • Is owned and managed non-locally. projected large increase in hog produc- • Hires barn workers who are often sin- tion in Manitoba. gle and mobile, with little stake in the • The approval of the proposal followed local community. the provisions of The Environment Act, • Purchases in bulk, from affiliated com- and ignored the provisions of The Sus- panies or from low-price sources out- tainable Development Act, proclaimed 1 side the community. July 1998, which committed the Gov- • Uses large volumes of water and pro- ernment of Manitoba to consider duces large amounts of waste. sustainability in evaluating all propos- als. The establishment of a large-scale meat • The staged licencing process under The processing plant has had the following Environment Act excluded considera- direct effects on communities: tion of the wider implications and im- • A shortage of, and overcrowding in, pacts of the proposed development. rental housing. • Requests for public hearings for the • Increased costs of handling social prob- “stages” in the licencing process were lems such as marital disputes and child denied by the then Minister of the En- abuse, and of health care and language vironment, leaving an impression in services. some quarters that the Memorandum • Increased cost of law enforcement, par- of Understanding had included accept- ticularly those costs associated with a ance of the proposal and an assurance young, male, and mobile workforce, that the licencing process would not such as intoxication, driving offences, delay final approval. Although infor- assault, and murder. mation sessions were held by the proponent, these did not allow the testi- The establishment of large-scale hog mony of independent experts, ques- production units in rural communities has tioning by a panel charged with evalu- affected the local community by: ating the evidence, or the introduction • Decreasing the number of family units of information on the wider effects of and the number of school children. the development. • Decreasing local purchasing with loss of local businesses. III. RECOMMENDATIONS • Loss of local control. 1. Any “Memorandum of Understand- The process for evaluating the MLM ing“ between the proponent of a major de- proposal for a large-scale hog-processing velopment and the Government of Mani- plant in Brandon was flawed in that: toba or any other public body should be a

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 3 public document and should require that ther on- or off-reserve. governmental commitment to any action or subsidy be conditional on full compli- 5. Consultation, representation, public ance with all pertinent laws and regula- information sessions, etc., are useful parts tions, including an evaluation of its of the examination and evaluation of a sustainability. There should be public proposal, but should not be used as a sub- participation in the processes. stitute for public hearings.

2. The Environment Act should be 6. The siting of hog barns should be con- amended to reflect the requirements of The sidered on both the Municipal/District Sustainable Development Act and the find- and the “Larger Area” level, so that deci- ings and recommendations of the 1999 sions can be based on broader considera- Manitoba Report on the Consultation on tions of economic, social, health, cultural, Sustainable Development (COSDI). and ecological impacts.

3. The Sustainable Development Act should 7. The Province of Manitoba should ini- be expanded beyond its current statement tiate a cooperative program with the mu- of principles. The requirement that all pro- nicipalities and other jurisdictions to im- vincial departments and agencies include prove the technical background for mak- the consideration of “sustainability” in all ing decisions by preparing risk maps in their policies and actions, and the proc- relation to the location of hog barns. Maps esses through which this goal may be at- for other potentially polluting develop- tained, should be legislated. This legisla- ments could also be included in such a tion should reflect the need to strengthen program. the ability of the government to resist short-term pressures to approve in prin- 8. Large-scale corporate animal produc- ciple, or to grant “perverse subsidies” (de- tion units (particularly for hogs and chick- fined by the 1992 Rio Declaration, which ens) should be: was signed by the Government of Canada, • placed under “Workplace Health and as any incentive that shifts any or all of Safety” legislation and regulation, in- the full cost of an action from the propo- cluding the Workers’ Compensation nent), and to allow full public exposure Act; and examination before the “go, not go, • made legally responsible for independ- or modify” decision is made. ent testing of ground and surface waters in their vicinity; and 4. The Canadian Environmental Assessment • included in The Animal Care Act, as suit- Act, currently being reviewed, should be ably amended to include animal con- amended to allow federal involvement in finement. impact assessment to be “triggered” by a potential impact upon federal responsi- 9. The Government of Manitoba should bilities, such as a threat to species under review recent research establishing the the Fisheries Act, and the protection of public health effects of hog-barn aerial resources used by indigenous people, ei- emissions on human mental and physi-

4 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba cal health. 1997). 10. The Government of Manitoba should This concept accepts that health is pos- support research on the role of phospho- sible only where resources are available rous in algal growth and surface water to meet human needs and where living ecological processes in the Assiniboine and working environments are protected River, Red River, and Lake Winnipeg. Li- from pollutants, pathogens, and physical censing of developments that would in- hazards. But health also includes a sense crease the amount of phosphorus in this of well-being and security. Deficient liv- watershed should be postponed until ing and working environments are asso- their impact can be established. ciated with both physical and psychoso- cial health problems. The 1992 Report of 11. The governments of Manitoba and WHO on Health and Environment has Canada should cooperate to increase the found that violence and alienation are as- number and frequency of tests for surface sociated not only with poor or low-paid water quality and for ground water lev- job prospects but also with poor quality els and quality. housing, deficient services, and inad- equate provision for recreation, relaxation, IV. PUBLIC HEALTH and development. This perspective, and the WHO defi- The Meaning of Health nition of health, will be used in this re- Health means more than an absence of port to be consistent with the policy di- disease, as is recognized in the Constitu- rectives of the governments of Manitoba tion of the World Health Organization and of Canada. (WHO): “Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being Determinants of Health and not merely the absence of disease or The maintenance and improvement of infirmity.” Governments worldwide, in- health must be at the centre of concern cluding the governments of Canada and about environment and development Manitoba, have formally accepted this (WHO 1993). Since 1991, Environment definition. It recognizes the importance Canada and Health Canada have been of psychological and social dimensions of developing indicators of physical environ- health as well as physical ones. In 1984, ment and ecology in relation to health. All the WHO Regional Office for Europe re- Canadian governments acknowledge that defined health as “the extent to which an there is much more to health than health individual or group is able, on the one care, and that population health strategies hand, to realize aspirations and to satisfy must address the entire range of factors needs, and on the other hand to change that determine health (Environment and cope with the environment.” This Canada 1991). emphasizes the importance of the concept Determinants of health are the pre- of “population health,” a concept which pathological components of health prob- is embedded in the policies of Health lems. The governments of Canada and Manitoba and in proposed amendments Manitoba have identified and adopted to The Public Health Act (Health Manitoba several key factors which influence popu-

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 5 lation health. Three of these factors are nities face similar challenges—population relevant to the information received by the mobility, rising rate of crime, health and commissioners at the public hearings and social problems, and strains on infrastruc- in other documents: 1. income and social ture and social services (Transcript. status; 2. employment and working con- Broadway, Stull, and Thu). ditions; and 3. safe and clean physical The industrial recruitment model used environments. The cross-jurisdictional by the pork processing plants in North variety of scientific data and anecdotal America has been shown to offer wages evidence on these key determinants of consistently lower than average per capita health in the context of intensified corpo- income. Historically, employee turnover rate hog production and processing form in packing plants averages 100% annually the basis of this section. Public discussion and many employees are never at one of these factors is necessary, since govern- plant long enough to earn the average ment still retains its central responsibility wage and benefits or to establish commu- for protecting individuals against threats nity roots. The income of most workers to their health and environment. Health is at, or near, levels required for one or Canada has identified as a “key priority” more government assistance programs. that “currently accepted definitions of These factors have a profound influence health and the known determinants of on overall community health and the de- health” are “the two most important pri- livery of health care. Public health prob- orities” in considering health in Environ- lems are on the rise (Transcript. Broad- mental Assessment (1997). way, Ikerd, Thu, and Stull). The social costs of large-scale hog production (char- Income and Social Status acterized by regional specialization and Large-scale corporate hog production vertical integration) include increased is one of the most contentious issues to homelessness, crime, domestic violence, confront rural North America in recent and demands for social assistance ( Tran- history. The social fabric of many com- script. Broadway, Stull). munities has been ripped apart by con- If “income and social status” is an iden- troversy between opposing views about tified determinant of health according to these large-scale corporate hog opera- government policy, then clearly there are tions. Other effects include reduced qual- significant health risks associated with ity of life, increased potential for health large-scale hog production and there is a risks, and a displacement of independent significant role that government must hog farmers (Transcript. Ikerd, Dye, Stull, play in identification and mitigation of and Braun). Low wage jobs and the tran- these risks. sient work forces they often create, coupled with preferential concessions Employment and Working Conditions granted to these corporations, have de- Processing: The coming of large hog cor- creased the quality of life in many com- porations to many centres in the United munities. Despite their separation by States and Canada could be referred to as large distances, and their differing histori- a “mixed blessing,” in that alternative cal and cultural traditions, these commu- opportunities for economic expansion in

6 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba some of these jurisdictions were foregone density in confined buildings where sev- by focusing effort and incentives on bring- eral air pollutants may be concentrated. ing large-scale corporate hog operations Epidemiological studies by several au- into the area. thors that were presented by Drs. Pip and The positive effects were creation of Paton indicate that pollution inside hog new jobs in the community, an increase confinement buildings represents a real in population, an increase in tax base, and human and animal health hazard. Signifi- an increase in the number of business es- cant correlation has been found between tablishments. However, these benefits altered pulmonary function in workers were associated with some dramatic and frequency of respiratory tract diseases changes and considerable “costs,” some in their pigs. “Hog dust” includes tiny of which are measurable while others can- particles from animals, feeds, and manure, not yet be measured because of the ab- which can act as carriers for endotoxins sence of developed methodology (Tran- and pathogens. These are among the most script. Broadway, Dye, Ikerd, Stull, and harmful pollutants encountered in the air Braun). of pig buildings (Bongers et al.1987). The United States Occupational Health Endotoxins are nonliving, complex mol- and Safety Administration has described ecules which are part of the cell wall of meatpacking as the most dangerous in- the gram-negative bacteria and occur in dustry in the United States during the manure. Exposure to high concentration 1980s and 1990s. As productivity and of airborne endotoxins can cause acute speed increase, injury and illness also in- fever and lung function alteration accom- crease (Transcript. Broadway). One in panied by respiratory complaints such as three slaughterhouse workers will be in- chest tightness, cough, shortness of jured on the job this year (Transcript. breath, and wheezing. Long-term endo- Dye). The cost of such injury is often a toxin exposure may lead to decreased public cost. Smithfield Foods, which has pulmonary function and chronic bronchi- acquired 10 other major pork corporations tis (Bongers et al. 1987). Ammonia is a in 1998 and 1999, is the largest pork pro- highly water-soluble gas frequently found ducer and processor in the world. In 1997, at high levels in confinement buildings. Smithfield Foods was convicted in federal It is readily absorbed by distal airway court and fined $12.6 million for what ul- mucous of humans, resulting in retention timately turned out to be nearly 7,000 of vapours and gases in their respiratory counts of illegally discharging hog plant system. wastes into a major Virginia waterway, the The extensive scientific literature on Pagan River, and then falsifying records workers in hog confinement facilities to cover up its activities. Its fine for safety (Transcript. Pip) demonstrates that work- violations levied under the North Dakota ers in hog barns have unique occupational Occupational Health and Safety Act is the illnesses: largest recorded to date. • organic dust syndrome caused by hog dust; Production: Intensification of pig farm- • a high rate of chronic respiratory illness ing methods has led to increased animal (asthma, chronic bronchitis);

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 7 • symptoms that directly correlate in in- otic resistance (Transcript. Thu). The tensity with the duration of exposure; same type of antibiotic-resistant patho- • respiratory or liver damage occurring gens identified in liquid manure have also over time, caused by exposure to bac- been found in surface and ground water terial endotoxins. near large-scale hog operations, suggest- Chronic respiratory disease in 25-30% ing that they have been viably trans- of workers inside these facilities has been ported. Five microbial contaminants that reported in 25 studies world wide (Tran- can be a hazard to human health have script. Thu). Since employment and been found: E. coli, Enterococcus, Yersinia, working conditions are determinants of Campylobacter, and Cryptosporidium. health, it is clear that there is significant American investigators have found risk to human health in large swine con- both Ascaris suum and Melatinium coli finement facilities (Transcript. Ikerd, Dye, in intensive hog operations. The main res- Stull, Pip, Hessel, Thu, and Paton). ervoir of infection for humans by these parasites is hogs (Transcript. Pip, Lewis). Safe and Clean Physical Environments: One hog producer reported a personal Investigators for the United States Centre Melatinium infection (Transcript. for Disease Control have found contami- Neufeld). Ascaris suum is a problem in nants related to large-scale hog produc- intensively-managed production systems, tion that have serious implications for hu- and the parasites can increase in such sys- man health. These include pathogens, tems (Transcript. Lewis). The potential heavy metals, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, danger associated with A. suum can be and parasites, all found in surrounding reduced if pig manure is handled prop- wells, drainage ditches, and underground erly. Spreading it untreated on fields is water (Transcript. Dye). Both barn and not handling it properly, as parasite eggs meat processing waste waters are loaded may be preserved for months after they with bacteria, many of which can be trans- are ploughed under (Transcript. Pip, mitted to humans (Transcript. Pip). Pig Lewis, and Paton). manure is entirely different from other mammalian manures and it ought to be 2. Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria: Sub- regarded as a potential health hazard. It therapeutic levels of antibiotics are used should be fermented aerobically or in the livestock industry to promote composted at thermophilic temperatures growth and reduce the cost of raising live- before being spread on the land (Tran- stock. That use fosters antibiotic resist- script. Lewis, and Paton). Practices of ance in bacteria which can be transmitted spreading liquid manure by “broadcast- to humans via the food supply or through ing” create aerosols that can carry patho- the contact with livestock or manure gens for miles (Transcript. Pip). (Transcript. Pip, Homme). Antibiotic treatment may be ineffective in persons 1. Pathogens: There is direct evidence that infected by pathogenic, antibiotic-resist- pathogens of concern to human health are ant bacteria, thereby jeopardizing their surviving in manure. These pathogens are health. Sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics exhibiting a disturbing pattern of antibi- also leads to increased levels of antibiotic

8 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba resistance in animal pathogens on the direct exposure to them can produce farm. That resistance endangers livestock symptoms from irritation to death in hu- since it makes an antibiotic less useful for mans and animals (Lorimer et al.1998). treating animal infections. This leads to These gasses affect the lungs and irritate pressure for the approval for use on ani- mucous membranes (Chapin et al. 1998). mals of antibiotics that are essential for Massive hog operations reduce air qual- treating human diseases. Swine manure ity with odour and gaseous emissions. has been shown to contain residues of The effects of these emissions range from amoxocillin, neomycin, oxytetracycline, health impairment among workers and chlortetracycline, and penicillin “G.” nearby residents to cumulative environ- These end up not only in waste, but also mental pollution. There is evidence of in the meat (Transcript. Pip). The use of serious mental stress of people who live these antibiotics on farms may compro- near these operations and are repeatedly mise their effectiveness in human medi- exposed to emissions. Mental stress de- cine (Centre for Science in the Public In- stroys health and affects the human bio- terest). Sweden banned antibiotic use in logical system (Transcript. Ikerd). Peo- feed in 1986 (Transcript. Homme, Pip). ple who are exposed to these airborne The extent and severity of this problem emissions also experience a series of has not been extensively studied, but there health problems at a disproportionate rate is evidence that antibiotics in animal feeds compared to people or controls who are produces antibiotic resistance in Salmo- not (Transcript. Thu, Hessel, Wing). Nox- nella faecalis (Transcript. Homme). ious environmental odours can trigger symptoms “by a variety of physiological 3. Air Quality, Odour, and Health: The mechanisms, including exacerbation of general realization that odour policy must underlying medical conditions, innate be based on a sound scientific odour odour aversion, aversive conditioning measurement has resulted in major devel- phenomena, stress induced illness, and opments in olfactometry and its accept- possible pheromonal reactions” ance as a legitimate environmental assess- (Shusterman 1992). Similarly, the emis- ment procedure (Schultz and sions from commercial hog operations Vanharrenveld 1996). This means policy affected nearby residents by causing ten- can no longer be based on simple nui- sion, depression, anger, reduced vigour, sance. Large-scale hog operations are es- and more confusion than a control group pecially susceptible to air quality prob- (Schiffman et al. 1995). In the U.S., the lems. A mixture of gases in animal waste University of Carolina’s School of Public creates these odours. The sources of Health and the Centre for Disease Con- odour are the barns, manure storage units, trol of the National Centre for Environ- effluent application, and carcass disposal. mental Health have both concluded that The four main gases produced by the emissions from large-scale hog facilities large-scale hog industry are hydrogen constitute a public health concern. sulphide, carbon dioxide, ammonia, and methane. Elevated levels of these gases are toxic to many higher organisms and

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 9 Conclusions particular, we need better comparative The available information, when data to assess the results associated with placed within the analytical framework of large-scale operations with comparable “health determinants” and “population data from other sizes and forms of hog health,” demonstrates conclusively that production. significant public health risks are associated with large-scale hog production. The 4. Governments should ensure that agri- fundamental biological needs for clean air, cultural uses of antibiotics do not endan- water, and healthy soil are also compro- ger public health. Current regulations that mised. Therefore, human health, as de- permit the sub-therapeutic use in live- fined by the World Health Organization stock of antibiotics that are used in (or re- and the governments of Canada and late to those used in) human medicine Manitoba, is clearly compromised by should be rescinded. This use of antibi- rapid expansion of large-scale hog opera- otics, which leads to the development of tions. antibiotic resistance, should be halted as soon as possible. Recommendations 1. Action should be taken early to address 5. Emissions, currently described as the obvious risks to human health (as de- “odour,” should be considered a “health” fined), created by intensive hog produc- issue rather than a “nuisance” issue in all tion and processing, even if present future policy on hog production and knowledge is insufficient to fully evalu- processing. ate these risks. Since three of the key determinants of health are affected by inten- V. GENERAL DEMOGRAPHIC sified hog production and processing, fur- ASPECTS ther expansion of these developments must be pursued with caution in the face The expansion of hog production and of uncertainty concerning environmental processing in recent decades has been as- and health implications. sociated with changes in the ownership and scale of operation of meat production 2. Human health (as defined) must be in North America and overseas. Associ- incorporated into the legislated environ- ated with this have been significant mental assessment process. Manitoba changes in the demographics of the com- Health must be involved at the concep- munities in which such operations are tual phase of development, not after the situated. fact. Hog Production 3. Indicators and measurables of the de- Until about 20 years ago, most hogs terminants of health which are specific to were raised on family farms with little pork production and processing should outside labour. The change to large-scale, be developed and applied before further corporate, often vertically-integrated op- expansion of pork production and erations, usually with units in several lo- processing is undertaken in Manitoba. In cations, has forced farm families out of

10 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba hog production and even out of farming. sustainability of rural and small town The new operations are usually control- communities. Although some of these led by non-resident management, and run effects occur in both large-scale produc- by hired barn workers, often with high tion and processing, we will examine turnover rates. In addition, these compa- them separately. nies tend to buy feeds and other supplies in bulk, either through an affiliated com- Large-scale Hog Production pany or from the cheapest supplier in a Traditional hog farms, which are large area. This decreases local purchases, owner-operated and involve little hired and may lead to the closing of businesses help, are quite different from the large- and loss of families. The net effect in ru- scale operations. These are usually cor- ral areas is a decrease in the number of porate-owned, operated by a manager stable family units and an increase in sin- with hired help, and are often part of an gle, mobile workers. integrated meat production and processing organization. The numbers of inde- Processing Plants pendent hog farmers displaced could be Many jobs in meat-processing plants greater than the number of jobs created are rather dirty, difficult, and relatively in new large-scale hog operations. This low-paid. The workers tend to be un- radical change in food production tech- skilled, mobile, and young. The rate of niques has had drastic effects on rural turnover is high, and as the local work communities in many parts of North force is depleted, it is replaced by a flow America. These effects were described as of immigrants from economically-de- including: pressed areas, nationally and internation- ally (Transcript. Dye). These workers, Replacement of Family Farms: In Mis- added to the existing community, will souri, Iowa, and other parts of North change its age-composition, family struc- America, the appearance of corporate hog ture, and ethnic composition. The smaller farms has tended to eliminate family farm the community, the greater the impact. operations. These cannot compete with a vertically-integrated industry that artifi- VI. SOCIAL ASPECTS cially depresses hog prices (Transcript. Dye). The social issues surrounding large- scale pork production and processing are Loss of Independent Markets for Hogs: wide-ranging and important. Often, lo- Large-scale processing plants tend to pro- cal communities and their citizens cannot mote contract suppliers rather than an control the business practices of meat- independent market. Family farmers are packing companies, yet they must deal placed in a precarious position, contracts with the social consequences of the indus- tend to give low returns, but there is no try’s presence. In short, the agri-indus- competitive market (Transcript. Braun). trial meat production system that has developed in North America has been de- Loss of Local Control over Decisions Af- scribed as threatening the long-term fecting the Community: Most rural com-

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 11 munities cannot compete with powerful multinational corporations. The munici- Pitting farmers of one country against palities lack technical expertise and eco- farmers of another country. Corporations nomic resources to defend their interests who wish to control the trade will elimi- against the “carrot” of jobs and the “stick” nate the trade irritants when they control of the plant’s threat to go elsewhere. all the food production on both sides of Corporate-owned factories have no the border. Farmers on each side of the loyalty to a community (Transcript. border are being used to achieve a larger Ikerd). goal. US grain production is being used to destroy peasant farmers in southern Hog prices have decreased as profits are Mexico. Canadian hog farmers destroy moved closer to the retail end of the busi- American hog farmers with the low dol- ness (Transcript. Tait) and large hog barns lar. The corporations are playing one purchase their supplies in bulk from non- against the other and destroying every- local suppliers, thus decreasing local in- body (Transcript. Tait, Braun). come. Hog factories can no longer be considered farming or agriculture, or even agri- Local strife occurs among residents as business. This is industry, pure and sim- they divide into pro- and anti- large-scale ple. We must remember that this is not a hog operations factions (Transcript. natural or inevitable evolution of agricul- Ikerd). ture. Just over a decade ago there were no factory-style swine operations any- Confinement of pregnant sows to gesta- where in North America. This is a delib- tion crates, and the treatment of animals erate plan by a handful of corporations to as if they were factory machines is offen- profit from consolidation, and ultimately sive to some people. Most of the pigs are to control the pork industry (Transcript. housed inside barns in pens with concrete Dye). or slatted floors, without bedding or One alternative to large-scale corporate straw. Sows are confined to individual hog production is now operating in Iowa, stalls so narrow that they cannot turn where owner/operators raise hogs ac- around. The sows spend their lives in an cording to “high husbandry standards” area so small that they have to eat, sleep, and market their product to a specialty urinate, and defecate all in the same spot. market. The animals have to be farrowed, This is what is frequently called factory raised in pastures and/or bedded pens, farming (Transcript. Burns). and not fed meat by-products. The owner/operator must live and work on There is a decline of public confidence in, the farm and directly care for the animals and support for agriculture, caused by (Transcript. Willis). Where such market public perception of the pollution and alternatives do not exist, farmer coopera- unethical treatment of animals associated tives, with the support of the Government with large-scale operations (Transcript. of Manitoba, could enhance the position Burns). of the family farm and bring a fair price to the market.

12 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba Large-scale Meat Processing between 1993 and1996, bucking a sharp Large-scale meat processing plants statewide decline. Unemployment is up have similar social impacts, whether they to 1.5% higher than pre-hog levels. Be- process hogs, cattle, chickens, or other tween 1990 and 1996, Putnam County had animals. During the past 15 years, small the slowest growth in personal income of towns in North America that have had the any county in the State. By 1997, Mercer sudden influx of population associated was the 147th poorest county in America— with packing plants have experienced 2963th of 3110 counties. Sullivan Coun- many of the same social problems experi- ty’s public hospital is currently facing enced by western energy boomtowns dur- bankruptcy, saddled with the costs of ing the 1970s, including increases in treating the packing plant’s oft-injured homelessness, crime, domestic violence, uninsured workers. Crimes have also in- and child abuse (Transcript. Broadway). creased; murder (133%), assault (40%), In Canada, High River has, so far, re- robbery (400%), driving while intoxicated mained relatively immune to these social (23%), and narcotics (25%). Domestic vio- changes as most of the plant’s labour force lence also has increased each year since resides in Calgary. In contrast, Brooks reporting began in 1992 (Dye 1999). Per- (with a beef processing plant employing haps the most disturbing statistics are over 2500 people) has experienced an in- about the children. All 3 counties ranked crease in a variety of social problems. poorly in relation to other counties in in- Many of those drawn to the town by the fant and child deaths, child abuse, and prospect of employment arrive penniless foster placements (Transcript. Dye). and need shelter. The company has re- The working conditions in large-scale sponded by providing trailer units that in meat processing plants are often poor. In total can accommodate up to 168 single the U.S., a large percentage of the process- men and women. The housing is located ing industry’s nationwide labour force is adjacent to the plant. It is surrounded by migrant workers with a tenuous social a chain link fence and barbed wire. Entry standing. They are often abused, over- is through a guardhouse structure. Food worked, and underpaid. A lawsuit, re- is provided by a system of vouchers that cently brought by several migrant work- workers exchange in the plant’s cafeteria. ers, accused the Premium Standard Foods Lakeside deducts the cost of rent, food, slaughterhouse of harassing injured and any extra equipment the employees workers, providing squalid, vermin-in- may have purchased, from their pay. This fested housing, and making false recruit- means that a worker has little to live on ing promises. Slaughterhouse jobs are and is unable to save for a damage de- particularly dangerous work. One in posit for an apartment. Crimes and the three such workers will be injured on the cost of social assistance have increased job this year (Dye 1999). (Dye 1999). Seaboard’s pork plant at Guymon, In three Missouri counties (Mercer, Oklahoma, has been associated with Putnam, and Sullivan) with large hog- seven broad areas of concern: growth and processing plants, temporary “Aid to turnover, housing, health, education, so- Needy Families” increased more than 10% cial services, crime, and communication.

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 13 Demand for social services will acceler- employee turnover, reduced wages, lack ate, but it is unlikely that significant finan- of adequate low-cost housing, health cial support for these services will come problems associated with high-speed from Seaboard, even though its employ- worker lines, and stress on the infrastruc- ees and their families rely heavily on these ture systems in education, social services, agencies’ services and resources. Crime and communication. A major concern is has increased, as it will do in any com- that the citizens in a community have no munity with an influx of young men. control over the corporate business prac- Communication with non-English-speak- tices that ultimately lead to the above ing immigrant workers placed demands problems. for translators in the social and justice systems (Transcript. Stull). 2. In addition to the goal of low input Communities with large scale-meat costs and high profits associated with the processing plants have all faced similar multinational meat companies, these in- challenges: growth, often rapid and explo- dustries should have a responsibility to sive; population mobility; costs associated the communities that host its facilities. with dramatic increases in cultural and Providing jobs is not enough, especially linguistic diversity; rising rates of crime, when jobs come with significant social health, and social problems; strains on and economic costs. Government should infrastructure and social services. These do more than lure new business with tax challenges stem from a common source: holidays. It should make funds available the meat and poultry processing indus- to communities to meet their needs, es- try and its constant hunger for workers. pecially those places facing rapid growth Communities that pursue economic de- and increasing ethnic and linguistic diver- velopment without adequately consider- sity. Grants are needed for transitional ing larger issues of community develop- and low-cost housing. Continuing fund- ment find themselves concerned about ing is necessary to offset additional drains what is happening in their communities on the institutions that provide health and to the way of life they cherish. Low- care, public education, and law enforce- wage jobs and the transient workforces ment. Host communities have an obliga- they often create, coupled with corporate tion as well. If they want new jobs, and tax holidays, can actually decrease the the added business and tax revenue that quality of life in a community. Commu- come with them, they must provide a suit- nity leaders must look beyond economic able environment for the workers who development to community develop- will fill those jobs. ment, if they are to build a successful community in the coming century (Transcript. 3. Animals must be raised in a humane Stull). manner. Manitoba should follow the lead of the UK and place a ban on gestation Conclusions crates in hog operations. As well, humane 1. Problems associated with large-scale treatment of animals at the processing processing plants include: homelessness, plant is an important issue. The larger the crime, domestic violence, child abuse, processing plant, the more stress both the

14 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba worker and the animal experience. In hogs, are processed in locally-owned and Manitoba, The Animal Care Act, pro- environmentally sustainable plants. claimed August 1 1998, exempts from the provisions of the act any animal involved 6. Provide just and humane working con- in an “accepted activity” such as agricul- ditions for all people engaged in produc- ture, slaughter, sporting events, fishing tion agriculture. and hunting, trapping, research, teaching, etc. This act should be reviewed and VII. ECONOMIC ASPECTS amended. Economics tries to quantify what we 4. As citizens of this country, we need to spend and what we receive. It is a means decide what kind of a country we want to to discover whether the initial purposes live in. A healthy, vibrant, rural economy of a project have been achieved, how with small family farms and small, local much it costs, and whether the conse- abattoirs is good for urban Canada as quences were expected and are accept- well. We need to restore public confidence able. By trying to quantify what we spend in the food system (currently very low). and what we receive, we are simply add- We need to develop a food supply system ing a perspective to the review. It is im- that does not destroy community, here or portant to note that quantifying expendi- in other countries. Farmers must be val- tures and receipts may involve attribu- ued for the contribution they make to our tions of value which vary among differ- society. ent people or interests. Our natural resources ought to be uni- Recommendations versally accepted as having value. This The Governments of Manitoba and of review of the economic aspects of indus- Canada should: trial hog production and processing is rooted in the public good and in the pub- 1. Recognize the importance and culti- lic interest, and the value judgments are vate the strengths of family farms. related to public more than to individual interests. It could be argued that all the 2. Promote, develop, and enforce fair, information available to the commission- competitive, and open markets for fam- ers spoke in some way to the considera- ily farms. tion of economics regarding this industry. Necessarily, only some of the information 3. Dedicate budget resources to presented has been selected for this sec- strengthen the competitive position of tion. family farms in Canadian agriculture. Private Benefit and Public Cost 4. Promote and develop locally owned The MLM plant at Brandon, as with processing plants. other government-sponsored mega- projects, was developed with the costs and 5. Promote vibrant rural communities expected benefits to the owner clearly where the primary production, such as identified and predicted. The benefits to

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 15 the public from investment, construction, These costs will accrue to the public and jobs can be similarly predicted. These through acceptance and licencing of the estimates are relatively straightforward, developments by the provincial govern- involving few intangibles and few attri- ment. They translate into real dollar out- butions of value that depend on qualita- lays which should be assessed before the tive judgement. However, the citizens government commits itself to such pro- and taxpayers in Brandon and across the posals. If the purpose of the investment Province of Manitoba also will be respon- of public money and resources is to gen- sible for expenses that are difficult to erate net benefit for the province then that quantify. These may include: purpose cannot be said to be accom- 1. The capital cost of any additions to the plished if the costs of the consequences of water treatment facility in Brandon, and the project are ignored or minimized, and liability in case of downstream damage. these costs exceed the benefits. A number of presenters produced in- 2. The ongoing and indefinite costs for depth reviews of the consequential pub- additional social infrastructure (e.g., so- lic costs that have been experienced by cial and health services) that predictably other jurisdictions hosting these mega- will increase. projects. There is enough similarity of experience in the U.S. and Canada to state 3. Expenditures to identify and correct that these consequences can be accepted problems associated with wastewater dis- as relevant to Manitoba. The public charges from the plant in Brandon as well should realize and be greatly concerned as waste, manure, and dead pigs at pro- that in most cases governments have ig- duction facilities. nored or understated the public costs before committing to a proposal. In addi- 4. The opportunity cost borne by the pub- tion, although social scientists across lic for loss of use and quality of the North America have described the prob- Assiniboine River, Red River, and down- lems in detail, little has been done to de- stream lakes caused by increased pollu- velop methods of quantifying the costs tion, and increased risk of contamination associated with development. of humans by transferred residues and parasites. Public Good Falls Through the Cracks Assessment procedures exist in most 5. The decommissioning and cleanup Canadian jurisdictions to identify the con- costs for the Brandon plant and hog pro- sequences and public costs relating to production facilities, excepting those covered posed developments. However, there are by The Contaminated Sites Act. significant differences among jurisdictions as to how an assessment is done and 6. The cost to the City of Brandon and the for what purpose. Province of Manitoba to monitor for com- The federal government, in general, pliance with the licence and for second- takes the view that the assessment is an ary environmental impacts. integral part of the decision-making process, and that purpose and consequence

16 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba should be considered before irrevocable Long Plain First Nation has put the fed- decisions are made. Unfortunately, this eral government on notice regarding its government has, in its legislation and liability for future costs because it failed practice, so restricted the circumstances to assess the project. under which it will apply these principles that they are often irrelevant to real life. Sustaining Individual Producers An example of this is the MLM plant in and Rural Communities Brandon, where the federal government The largest industrial producers in the expressed deep concerns about potential U.S. have already moved to vertical inte- pollution of the Assiniboine River (letter, gration of production and supply by con- B. Briscoe to L. Strachan, 17 March 1998). trolling every aspect of the hog industry Nevertheless, it did not initiate an assess- from conception to consumer. Profits are ment of the project even when specifically focused at the retail end of the business. asked to do so by the Long Plain First In the U.S., pressure has been put on Nation. small-scale producers to lower their costs, The Manitoba approach starts from a which eventually puts them out of busi- different premise, namely that the pur- ness, while the consumer pays an ever pose of an assessment is to mitigate the increasing price at the store. If these meth- consequences of the project, rather than ods are transported to Canada, we can to decide whether the project should pro- anticipate massive changes to the ceed. sustainability of individual producers and Briefly, the federal government ap- rural communities. There are predictions proach looks at pollution issues in ad- and signs that this will happen. Diverse vance, while the Manitoba approach is to opinions about the economics of this ap- monitor the consequences and fix prob- proach to pork production, and its im- lems as they arise. In relation to the MLM pacts on farmers and communities, were plant, the Province of Manitoba, by the expressed at the hearings and in the other terms of the licence, made the City of material available to the commissioners. Brandon responsible for expenses for re- When the MLM plant at Brandon was medial work and some liability for fu- announced in 1997 Manitoba hog produc- ture problems. Each level of government ers were promised an increase in price at steadfastly stakes out its position based the farm gate when the Brandon facility upon its legislation. opened. Has this happened? The West- This situation can easily lead to higher ern Producer (January 6 2000:47) again costs for the public in the future. For ex- makes such a claim in relation to the pro- ample, millions of extra dollars are exposed Schneider/Smithfield plant at Win- pected to be needed for remedial work to nipeg. This report, however, steps back deal with ammonia and phosphates in the from the previous “promise” and reflects discharges from the Maple Leaf plant at more of a “contingent possibility.” How Brandon. These problems were antici- likely is such an increase in payment to pated, but neither senior level of govern- the producers? This is an important ques- ment dealt with them before the approv- tion because the experience in the U.S. has als were given for the project. Further, the

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 17 been to the contrary. duction stated that these problems are It is in the public interest to have inde- directly related to the size of the opera- pendent and competent reviews of the tion. It is clear that more pro-active regu- following questions: lation of industrial agriculture is required. 1. Will the individual producer benefit or In general, a clear distinction between in- not? dustrial-scale agricultural production and 2. Will our rural communities benefit or individual farm producers was made in not? the material available to us, e.g., the regu- 3. What are the consequences of the in- lations for disposal of wastes (Manitoba dustrialization of farm production? Gazette 1998; Transcript. Brown). When 4. What serves the public interest best: additional regulation of farm practices is individual producers or industrial pro- considered, individual producers are ducers? properly concerned that their profitabil- Only when such a review has informa- ity will be reduced under the weight of tion and perspective from industrial pro- excessive regulations. Therefore, any new ducers, individual producers, processors, regulations must be sensitive not only to retailers, consumers, and the public, can the problems of large-scale waste disposal reasonable and balanced policies be de- but also to the realities of and costs to veloped. Ad hoc decision-making will smaller, individual farmers. surely lead us to trouble. We are aware that some predict that industrial hog pro- The Future of Agriculture is Related to duction will bring great economic benefit Economics to producers and to communities. Oth- We cannot expect producers of agricul- ers equally qualified say that these eco- tural goods to continue to produce if they nomic benefits are illusory. If the latter do not receive adequate and reasonable view is more accurate, there will be sub- compensation for their efforts. We are liv- stantial costs to the public as the income ing with rapid structural changes to ideas levels of individual producers and fam- on profitability, social services, commu- ily farmers shrink and local communities nity infrastructure and other matters, continue to erode. If the former view is caused by the industrialization of agricul- more accurate, increased income will en- ture in response to globalization of pro- able communities to remain strong and to duction, processing, and marketing activi- handle increased costs. These are impor- ties. Structural changes can have both tant economic questions with important good and bad consequences. And so the social consequences. A full review of question becomes: “How do we achieve events in other jurisdictions and of cur- a balance that provides net benefits to the rent specifics is necessary before decisions communities of Manitoba, the West, and are made. Canada? ” It is essential that we plan ap- propriate responses in our approach to The Economics of Regulation these changes. It should be possible to use Scientists who identified in detail the public money effectively by developing waste disposal, contamination, and pol- agricultural policies that respond to the lution problems flowing from hog pro- changing world. The following are some

18 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba of the questions that could underpin the Who are the parties at risk of liability? The development of such policies: industrial proponents? Government as 1. What are the structural change factors partner? Government as regulator? Both (as distinct from the cyclical change fac- industry and government should be in- tors) which are evident in agriculture terested in reducing their future risk of today? liability by improving the quality of their 2. What are the effects of these changes? decision-making today. In addition, the 3. How can we best adapt to meet the public in Manitoba have a right to know challenges of these changes? whether any level of government has ac- 4. How can we position ourselves to the cepted or considered the costs of future best advantage now and achieve remedial work and liability relative to hog sustainability for the future, acknowl- production and processing projects. Gov- edging that there are external forces? ernment has the obligation to provide this 5. What is worth saving? information if it is to be seen as acting in 6. What merits rejection? the public interest.

Future Costs: Who Should Pay? Who Recommendations Will Pay? 1. The Government of Manitoba should During the hearings we heard from review and change its environmental as- government officials, scientists, produc- sessment procedures to do away with ers, and producer groups who told us that staged licencing. Evaluation of the whole there are many unanswered questions picture is needed for large developments, about industrial hog production and including whether it is in the public in- processing. Significant funding is being terest that the proposal as a whole should allocated to problem identification and the proceed or not. This should be the func- quest for solutions. In the future there tion of a body, established through legis- may be significant issues of liability for lative mandate, to conduct such assess- damages and compensation depending ments. on how these problems are solved. By way of analogy, governments across 2. The Government of Manitoba should North America spent large sums over a review and change its environmental as- period of years supporting the tobacco sessment procedures to require a display industry and then more money in identi- of the actual and contingent present and fying associated health and social prob- future public costs of a development. The lems. Then, private and public litigants legitimate role of government in a devel- began to sue the tobacco companies to opment is to assess the proposal in the recover private and public health costs. public interest, by identifying the issues, Many of these claims have been success- getting the best answers to questions of ful. How long will it be before someone fact or science, and balancing the tradeoffs develops a claim for the private or public for the public good. costs of pollution, remedial work, or resource depletion consequent upon a large 3. Government, and thus the public, industrial project such as the MLM plant? should avoid undertaking open-ended li-

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 19 ability for pollution cleanup and and environmental impacts are difficult decommissioning relating to industrial to avoid. hog production. The consequences should follow the profit. Hog Production The major environmental concerns 4. A public inquiry or commission, estab- with respect to hog barns are related to lished by the legislature of Manitoba, their unpleasant and unhealthy aerial should be convened as soon as possible emissions, the production and disposal to review and report on the future of ag- of large quantities of waste, and their riculture and the purposes, methods, and large water consumption. consequences of the industrialization of agricultural production. These are issues Emissions: The odours associated with of vital importance to all Manitobans and hog barns are well known and well docu- only a body with legislative authority will mented. Perception of odours depends be able to bring before it representatives on concentration, wind direction and of all interests. speed, distance from the source, and the acuteness of an individual’s sense of 5. Federal and provincial officials should smell. These odours are associated with jointly establish a framework for the gath- airborne particulates (hog dust) which ering of baseline data on natural resources include endotoxins. Recent research has that would be available as a foundation established that physical and mental for future decision-making. These data health problems are directly related to should be available to the public on an these emissions and industry and regula- ongoing basis. tors need to develop and install corrective measures (Section IV; Transcript. Hessel). 6. The terms of all development agree- ments between government and an indus- Waste and Waste Disposal: The large try should be made public so that citizens quantities of waste produced by large- can properly judge what has been traded scale hog barns are difficult to dispose of for what. without damage to the environment. Commonly, the waste is stored in lagoons VIII. ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS and then spread on crop land. Contami- nation from lagoons can occur through The environment influences all human loss of nitrogen from the surface to the activities, which in turn have an effect on atmosphere (deposited downwind in the environment; the greater the concen- rain); through loss of nutrients from the tration of humans the greater the impact bottom and sides to the soil and water ta- on the environment. One of the underly- ble; by exit from a breach of the lagoon ing themes of several presentations to the caused by heavy rains or floods; and by Commission was the fact that the environ- the residues and contaminated soil when mental effects of small-scale hog produc- the lagoon is decommissioned (Transcript. tion and processing are controllable, Hargrove). Some spectacular, weather- whereas large-scale operations produce large quantities of waste at a few locations 20 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba related lagoon failures and severe ground- does not cover potential airborne health and surface-water contamination in North risks (Transcript. Brown). At issue dur- Carolina (Mallin 2000), and recent stud- ing the hearing was whether these regu- ies in Missouri and Virginia (Transcript. lations should be regarded as “guidelines” Dye.), suggest that current guidelines for or “rules,” an indication, perhaps, of the lagoon construction anddecommissioning need for clarity and certainty in their op- do not adequately address differences in eration. drainage, soil type, sub-surface geology, water table levels, and susceptibility to Water Consumption: Large-scale hog floods and other hazards. barns that use well water can lower wa- Nutrients from manure from lagoons ter tables, affecting wells, ponds, and the can be recycled only up to the agronomic vegetation in low-lying areas in the vicin- requirements of the crop; beyond that they ity. More hog barns means increased wa- pollute surface and ground waters. When ter demand. An understanding of local manure is dug in, pathogens may survive water availability is imperative before in the soil, particularly in cold climates. each new barn is established. Water avail- When manure is sprayed, some patho- ability is one of many parameters, includ- gens survive in the atmosphere and may ing aquifer protection and soil character- be carried several kilometres down wind istics, which should be examined in mu- (Transcript. Pip.). Excess applications can nicipal and regional planning. contaminate streams by surface runoff, or ground water by percolation, especially Hog Processing if the water table is close to the surface. Many of the presentations and other Studies of waste disposal problems at documents were from the U.S., where the Prairie Science Centre in Saskatoon such plants have been established over the include the evaluation of earthen manure past 20 years. What has happened there storage structures, and the impact on sur- could happen here. The principal environ- face water quality of the spreading of mental impacts were: use of large quan- slurry on cropland (Transcript. Patience). tities of water; production and disposal Currently, Manitoba controls animal of liquid and solid wastes; and emission production through the “Livestock Ma- of odours. nure and Mortalities Regulation” under The Environment Act (Manitoba Gazette Water Demand: Hog processing plants 1998). These regulations are progressive, are exceedingly water greedy, using from but they do not address phosphates or 700- 1025 L per hog to process. For exam- airborne pollution. They should be example, the proposed Yonyee plant at ined for coherence, completeness, and to Lethbridge, processing 8000 hogs a day, reflect recent information on the effects of may use about 8 million litres of water per soil types, water table, susceptibility to day (Transcript. Bradley). The MLM natural disasters, and the problems of plant in Brandon gets its water from the decommissioning lagoons. Brandon Water Treatment Plant which Odour complaints are handled by the takes water from the Assiniboine River. Farm Practices Protection Board, which The MLM facility will require about 4.5

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 21 million litres per day per shift (Collinge ground water monitoring program was 1998). Initially there will be one shift but mandated (Transcript. Strachan). MLM a second shift is planned for 2003/2004. operate a pre-treatment plant at its facil- The increased demand for water for the ity, but the wastewater treatment plant plant and for the projected population was designed and constructed by the City increases in Brandon will require in- of Brandon. It discharges directly through creased treatment capacity sometime be- a UV disinfection unit into the Assiniboine tween 2002 and 2007 (City of Brandon River (Lawrence and Bernhardt 1998). 1999). This will reduce the volume avail- Considerable discussion revolved around able downstream, for domestic use, agri- the issue of potential pollution of the river. culture, industry, and in-stream require- A model was used to predict the results ments for the preservation of a healthy of adding discharge from the MLM facil- river - the stated aim of the Assiniboine ity to existing discharges from the City of River Management Advisory Board Brandon, Simplot, Manitoba Hydro, and (Dickson 1998). Ayerst. The model’s predictions in terms of major pollutants were that the fecal Odour: As with hog barns, odour is a coliform count, the levels of ammonia problem, particularly for people living (with some concern in the mixing zone), downwind of the processing plants. The suspended solids, and chlorides would be MLM plant is located in the eastern part within Manitoba Surface Water Quality of Brandon, east of the main built up area. Objectives (MSWQO). The level of dis- Fortunately for Brandon’s citizens the pre- solved oxygen would be exceeded in Feb- vailing wind at Brandon is from the west. ruary and March, but the objective for However, during the spring (April-May) overall maximum dissolved oxygen east and northeast winds occur on aver- would not be exceeded. An increase in age 29 percent of the time (McGinn 1988). the level of plant nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorous) was projected, which could Liquid Waste: The disposal of the large exacerbate existing algae bloom problems quantities of liquid waste produced by (Transcript. Strachan). Questions about processing plants involves several steps. this approach and the results obtained are: The liquid is processed in lagoons and • Did sufficient data exist to run the then released to a nearby water body. model, given that there was insufficient Contamination will occur if the lagoons available data to justify a CEC hearing? leak into the ground water or if the dis- • No common standard for ammonia charge water is not sufficiently clean. The exists, so what requirement is not be- MLM plant is at the western edge of the ing exceeded? Assiniboine Delta and is underlain by • If the dissolved oxygen requirement is porous sands and gravels. The possible exceeded part of the time, it will have contamination of ground water at the site an adverse effect even though the over- was examined during the provincial ap- all maximum is not exceeded. This is proval process. To ensure that any leak- recognized by the clause in the MLM age from the operation of the wastewater license requiring production to cease if treatment facility would be detected, a dissolved oxygen levels are exceeded

22 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba at times of low flow (Transcript. ity to handle the solid waste needs of the Williamson). community at least until 2007 (City of • If algae blooms are generated, the as- Brandon 1999). In Manitoba, landfills are similative capacity of the river has al- regulated under The Environment Act. ready been exceeded. • A license was issued for the first shift Downstream Concerns: Increased use at MLM with no phosphorous control, and possible increased pollution of the but the issue will be “revisited” before Assiniboine River are the main environ- a second shift is implemented. This mental issues associated with the MLM issue caused much discussion because plant in Brandon. The basin has to be con- high phosphorous levels encourage the sidered as a whole—anything that hap- growth of blue-green algae which have pens in Brandon can affect all downstream an adverse effect on fish and restrict users and potential users of the river (Ag- uses of Assiniboine water. Prairie riv- riculture Canada 1988). These include the ers have a high natural phosphorous McCain potato processing plant at Por- content which makes it difficult to de- tage la Prairie, the MLM plant in Brandon, termine what is natural and what is the water supply to Portage La Prairie and added by human activities. As the the Dakota Tipi First Nation, irrigation of MSWQO for phosphorous is exceeded crops, principally in the Portage area, and almost 100% of the time as the the nutrient level in Lake Winnipeg. Any Assiniboine enters Manitoba, what jus- deterioration of water quality will require tification is there for adding more? increased treatment of the Portage water However, despite the current abun- supply. Also, evidence exists that crops dance of phosphorous “we are not see- irrigated by water containing blue-green ing the normal sort of algal growth that algae have a reduced level of photosyn- we would predict if we were in a clear thesis. A plan to divert water from the flowing stream, or a lake situation” Assiniboine to the Rat River will be hin- (Transcript. Williamson). Phospho- dered if water quality deteriorates. This rous is not covered in the MLM license plan calls for water to be stored in lagoons, because “we are not convinced that if and, although algae growth has not been we remove phosphorous from the ef- a problem in the river, it might become so fluent that it would have any effect on in stagnant water (Transcript. Tait). the Assiniboine River” (Transcript. People of the Long Plain First Nation Williamson). The commissioners and the Dakota Plains First Nation have a found this discussion confusing and long-standing interest in and dependence narrow in scope. on the Assiniboine River—for transport, water supply, fishing and recreation (Tran- Solid waste will be dumped in the script. Scribe). Even now, swimming in Brandon landfill which is on permeable the river is not advised and the water can- sand and gravels. The site has a geotexile not be drunk. The Dakota Tipi First Na- liner to guard against ground water con- tion receives piped water from Portage La tamination. The site is adequate at Prairie and the Long Plain First Nation present, and should have sufficient capac- gets water from wells close to the river.

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 23 These wells are vulnerable to flooding and statement about the connection be- contamination by the Assiniboine. These tween “background” phosphorous First Nations insist that the MLM plant content, additions by the MLM plant not further restrict their use of the river in Brandon, and the growth of algae. and hope for protection by the federal This study should be completed be- government, which has a fiduciary re- fore a second shift is started at this sponsibility for them. plant. It is worth noting that if legal action is taken by downstream users of the IX. THE EVALUATION OF THE Assiniboine as a result of pollution by MAPLE LEAF MEATS PROPOSAL MLM, the action would be against the City of Brandon which owns and oper- The Question of a Clean Environment ates the treatment plant. Commission Hearing The filing of the proposal to construct Recommendations the plant (February 27 1998), the Stage 1 The Government of Manitoba, which submission (April 14 1998) and the “Pre- has the major responsibility in these ar- liminary Steps” license (May 8 1998) gave eas, should: rise to a petition and numerous letters for • Review recent research on the effects and against a Clean Environment Com- of hog barn emissions on human mission (CEC) hearing (Public Registry, health, both physical and mental, and File 4289.20). The primary reason given change legislation and regulations to for not recommending a CEC hearing to reflect these results. the Minister was: “Specific river impacts • Require a description of existing are uncertain due to insufficient river in- ground water quality and quantity at formation: a public hearing will not re- the location of proposed new hog barns solve this issue. The river monitoring pro- and a prediction of their impacts on gram is underway” (Public Registry, File these waters before any proposal is ac- 4289.20). This position was supported by cepted. other factors—that Brandon would moni- • Institute a policy of systematic and con- tor for specific impacts; that initial ap- tinuous testing of ground water levels proval would be for a single shift; that the and quality in areas surrounding exist- existing water treatment plant at Portage ing and new major hog producing op- la Prairie was adequate; that other depart- erations. ments would be active in disease control • Institute a policy of systematic and con- and worker protection; and that The En- tinuous testing of surface water qual- vironment Act provided for staged licens- ity in those parts of the province in ing. At the Citizens’ Hearing a representa- which major hog producing operations tive of Manitoba Environment stated: “in exist. our view sufficient data were not avail- • Commission a detailed study of the able in terms of river impacts to justify a phosphorous content of the Commission hearing. Our experience Assiniboine River to obtain a definitive with the Commission is that if we came

24 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba to them with that uncertainty, all the Com- as the mitigation believed to be possible. mission would do is adjourn the hearing This is done in front of the public at large until that information was available” and is subject to detailed questioning. In (Transcript. Strachan). contrast, the Citizens’ Hearing could not compel testimony. One consequence of Federal Government Involvement in the this Ministerial decision was that public Assessment Process understanding of the project, including its The federal environmental assessment wider implications for life in rural Mani- process is usually initiated if “federal toba, was considerably reduced. In set- money is involved, it occurs on federal ting the conditions of the operating li- land, or some federal decision-making cense, the government of the day relied authority is involved” (Transcript. very heavily, if not solely, on the knowl- Briscoe). Environment Canada chose in- edge of its staff and their ability to evalu- volvement in the provincial assessment ate the relevant research and experience. process in order to add its views of the The government seemed to signal its over- impacts of the plant on the aquatic re- whelming concern for jobs and economic sources of the Assiniboine River. That gain, carefully avoiding any element of department also said that staged assess- public debate which would have been tan- ment approvals tend to compromise the tamount to planning for the future. intent of a proper environmental assessment before irrevocable decisions are Sustainable Development Considerations: made. However, the federal trigger which The advice provided by Manitoba Envi- might have resulted in a full federal proc- ronment (December 12 1997) to MLM re- ess was not pulled. It seems that federal ferred to the requirement that the 10 prin- financial involvement in a project is the ciples and six fundamental guidelines of most exercised reason for initiating the sustainable development, as listed in the federal process (Transcript. Briscoe). Had publication “Towards a Sustainable De- federal money been involved, construc- velopment Strategy for Manitobans,” tion probably would not have started un- should be addressed in the process of pre- til an environmental decision was avail- paring an environmental assessment able. The provincial process, in compari- (Public Registry, File 4289.20). At that son, is more likely to pursue rather than time, the Manitoba Round Table on Envi- to lead the proponent’s start-up. ronment and Economy, on behalf of the government, was engaged in a vigourous A Missed Opportunity? Notwithstanding public dialogue on the ways in which sus- the probable limitations in the scope of a tainable development should be applied CEC hearing, a formal process has one in the province. As well, departments major advantage over public information such as Manitoba Natural Resources and meetings and fora such as the Citizens’ Manitoba Agriculture were beginning to Hearing. Both the proponent and the gov- examine the orientation of their policies ernment can be obliged to appear. They under the rubric of sustainable develop- must expose the anticipated environmen- ment. The assessment process in which tal consequences of an installation as well MLM became engaged therefore took

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 25 place while the implications of sustainable tainable Development Principles and development were paraded as a priority Guidelines’ into decision-making, includ- consideration in the way in which gov- ing environmental management, licens- ernment should do business. Subse- ing, land use planning, and regulatory quently, all departments and agencies of processes.” (COSDI 1999). The COSDI the Government of Manitoba were com- recommendations on “Municipal/District mitted to using these principles and Plans” and “Planning at Large Area guidelines in their policies and operations Level” are particularly pertinent, but the by “The Sustainable Development Act,” pro- COSDI Report provides food for thought claimed 1 July 1998. Departmental com- on many other issues. For example, it pro- pliance has been slow (Transcript. poses that an effects assessment include Strachan). Had public hearings on the the assessment and review of all the MLM proposal been held using these sustainability factors. We believe the gov- principles and guidelines, they should ernment should pursue the recommenda- have examined the long-term viability of tions with vigour as a framework for in- the plant proper; the implications for ag- tensive public debate and a foundation for riculture in Manitoba (including socio- regulations, to bring new order to rural economic impacts); and the central envi- Manitoba and the hog industry in particu- ronmental concern about the bio-physical lar. capability of our environment to support Several presentations commented on the concentrated production and process- the implications of factory production and ing of hogs. processing of hogs for rural development Would the CEC have seriously consid- and lifestyle. Much was cautionary, as for ered testimony on the farm income crisis example the advocacy of strict regulation and the future of family farms, surely a and inspection, careful storage and han- priority for a government professing con- dling of manure, sensitivity of sub-soils, cern for sustainability? Probably not. etc. (Transcript. Brown). Pervading much Experience indicates a courteous recep- of the discussion was the question of the tion followed by the avoidance of such appropriateness of the industry to Mani- large questions. They are not local to the toba, if it is to continue in the corporate project under consideration, and not the form characterized by MLM and its sup- stuff of a license to regulate the operation ply network of hog barns. The demands of the plant with regard to waste disposal of the second shift at the plant and a pro- and air and water quality. posed new, major facility in Winnipeg add to the urgency of addressing these ques- Applying the Recommendations of the tions. Consultation on Sustainable Develop- ment Implementation (COSDI): Recommendations In March 1997, the government 1. The recommendations of the Report of launched a multi-stakeholder consulta- the Consultation on Sustainable Develop- tion initiative “to consider and make rec- ment Implementation (COSDI) should be ommendations to government on how implemented with all possible speed and Manitoba can best implement the ‘Sus- its processes adopted even in the absence

26 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba of confirming legislation. information sessions, etc., are useful, but should not be substituted for for- 2. With reference to hog production, pri- mal hearings. ority should be given to sustainable de- c. The Environment Act should be velopment planning at the “Municipal/ amended, at the earliest opportunity, District” level as well as at the “Larger to reflect the findings and recommen- Area” level, so that developmental deci- dations of the COSDI Report. sions, when they are made, can be based d. Individuals and groups interested in upon the best available foundation of eco- the role of the federal government in logical, economic, social, cultural, and impact assessment should take advan- human health considerations. tage of the opportunity to be involved in the review of The Canadian Environ- 3. Municipal ability to assess the suitabil- mental Assessment Act now in progress. ity of the siting of hog barns could be im- In particular, the “triggering” provision proved if the province and municipalities related to the regulatory authority of cooperated in producing risk maps for the federal government, and the ques- each jurisdiction. tion of federal intervention in the protection of resources “off-reserve” but 4. With reference to large processing customarily utilized by indigenous plants, “effects assessment,” as distinct people should be examined. from environmental impact assessment as set out in The Environment Act, should be adopted so that all sustainability factors can be addressed in each license.

5. Public participation in the assessment of new major developments should be the rule. In particular: a. The COSDI Report’s recommendations on this subject should be strengthened by legislation to assist the Minister to resist the pressures of “jobs and revenue” until there has been full, formal discussion of each development and its implications for the sustainability of the plant proper and its supply. In addition, time is needed to integrate the public’s views (and to follow up the signals originating in the discussion) into a “go, not go, or modify” decision. b. Consultation, representation, public

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 27 APPENDIX A LIST OF PRESENTERS: CITIZENS’ HEARING ON PORK PRODUCTION AND THE ENVIRONMENT Agricultural Extension Centre, • Scott Dye (Agricultural Coordinator, Brandon, MB Sierra Club Missouri); The Economic, October 29-31, 1999 Environmental and Social Impacts of Corporate Pork Production — A Mis- FRIDAY (1:00 - 5:00 p.m.; 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.) souri Perspective • Dr. John Ikerd (Missouri); Ten Reasons • Dr. Bill Paton (Brandon University); Rural Communities Should Be Con- The Maple Leaf Meats wastewater cerned About Large Scale, Corporate treatment plant Hog Operations • Larry Strachan (Director of Approvals, Manitoba Conservation); Approvals SATURDAY (9:00 - 12:00 p.m.; 1:30 - 6:00 Overview — Maple Leaf Meats p.m.) Open Presentation. Tony Riley (Farmer, Strathclair, MB) • Fred Tait (Rossendale, MB; National • Michael Broadway (Northern Michi- Farmers’ Union); Expanding Pork Pro- gan State University); Boom and Bust duction and Export — Who Benefits? in Prairie Meatpacking Towns • Kendall Thu (Northern Illinois Univer- • Vincent Amanor-Boadu (George Mor- sity); Recent findings from Environ- ris Centre, Guelph, ON); Trade, Envi- mental Health Research on Large-scale ronment and Agri-Food Production: Swine Operations Some Sagacious Musings Open Presentation. Barry Briscoe (Envi- ronment Canada, Winnipeg, MB) Open Presentation. Vicky Burns (Winni- • Dr. Bill Hargrove (Director, Kansas peg Humane Society) Centre for Agricultural Resources and • Dennis Brown (Regional Director, East- the Environment); Kansas Animal ern Interlake Region, Manitoba Conser- Waste Lagoon Water Quality Study vation); The Environment Act: Live- • Dr. Patrick Hessel (Edmonton); Com- stock Manure and Mortalities Manage- munity Perceptions of Air Quality, ment Regulation Odours, and Health Near Intensive • Dwight Williamson (Manager, Water Livestock Operations Quality Management, Manitoba Con- Open Presentation. Randolph Stefanson servation); Management of Assiniboine (Farmer, R.M. of Bifrost, MB) River Water Quality • Dr. Eva Pip (University of Winnipeg); • Ron Dalmyn & Phyllis Abbe (Winni- The hog industry and public health peg, MB); Greed! Deceit! Justice? • Dr. John Patience (CEO, Prairie Swine (Dalmyn); The spider at its web — a Centre, Saskatoon, SK); Providing re- commentary on corporate greed and search and technology transfer services vertical integration (Abbe) to the pork industry

28 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba Open Presentation. David Neufeld • Dr. Paul Lewis (Lethbridge, AB); Swine (Grower, Boissevain, MB) parasites • Donald Stull (University of Kansas); • Dr. Paul Homme (Granite River, MN); The Impact of Seaboard’s Pork Plant on Antibiotic Resistance and “Political” Guymon, Oklahoma Science • Paul Willis (Iowa); Marketing Environ- • Jim & Pam Braun (Iowa); A Farm- mentally Friendly Pigs Wife’s Observations of a Consolidating Industry and Social Challenges This SUNDAY (9:00 - 12:00 p.m.; 1:30 - 4:00 Creates p.m.) • Dr. Bill Paton (Brandon University); Sustainability of the hog industry Open Presentation. Chief Dennis Meeches (Long Plain Band, MB) The transcript of these hearings, and • Brian Scribe (Redstone Environmental, the list of reference to documents avail- Saskatoon, SK); The Assiniboine River able to the commissioners are available for Protection Project for the Long Plain scrutiny at the Public Registry, Manitoba First Nation: Traditional Land Use Re- Conservation, and copies may be related to Assiniboine River Issues quested from: The Westman Community • Dr. Cheryl Bradley (Lethbridge, AB); Action Coalition, Box 22021, Brandon, MB Environmental Concerns Regarding R7A 6Y9, Canada; or by e-mail Large-scale Hog Production and . Processing in Southern Alberta — What We Have Learned and Where Are We Headed

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 29 REFERENCES October, 1999. Bradley, Cheryl. “Environmental concerns regarding large-scale pork production and processing Bongers et al (1987), Lung Function and Respi- in southern Alberta — What we have learned and ratory Symptoms in Pig Farmers, British Journal of In- where we are headed.” Submission to the CHPPE. dustrial Medicine, Vol 44 819-823. Brandon. 31 October, 1999. Chapin et al (1998), Controlling Odour and Gas- Brandon, City. Correspondence with City of eous Emissions From Institutional Swine Facilities, Yale Portage regarding impacts of Maple Leaf Waste Wa- Environmental Protection Clinic, New Haven ter Treatment Plant on downstream users of the Environment Canada (1991), Report On Cana- Assiniboine River; concerns of the City of Portage. da’s Progress Toward National Environmental Indicators, Sept.-Oct., 1998 State Of The Environment Report, Ottawa. Brandon, City. Correspondence with Cana- Health Canada (1997), Environmental Assess- dian Department of Fisheries and Oceans regarding ment And Human Health: Perspectives, Approaches and impacts of Maple Leaf Waste Water Treatment Plant Future Directions, Minister Of Supply and Service, on Assiniboine River water quality and fish habitat. Canada. Sept.-Oct., 1998. Lorimer J., C.V. Schwab and L. Miller (1994). Brandon, City. Maple Leaf Meats Inc. Environ- Manure Storage Poses Invisible Risks. Iowa State Uni- ment Act Proposal — Process Wastewater Treatment Fa- versity Publication #PM-1518K. cility for Hog Processing Plant in Brandon, Manitoba. Manitoba Health (1997), Scope Of The Review Brandon. Prepared with the assistance of the Depart- Of The Public Health Act, Working Document. ment of Botany, Brandon University. 87 pages. 29 July, Manitoba Health (1999), Provincial Health In- 1998. dicators, Health Indicators Working Group. Braun, Pamela. The Pork Shift: An Iowa Shiffman S.S., E.A. Sattely Miller et al (1995). Farmwife’s Observations of a Consolidating Industry and The Effect Of Environmental Odours Emanating From Social Challenges This Created. Submissions to the Commercial Swine Operations On The Mood Of Residents CHPPE. Brandon, 31 October, 1999. Nearby. Brain Research Bulletin, Vol. 37, Pages 369- Braun, Pamela. “Fire in the Belly”. Submis- 375. sions to the CHPPE. Brandon, 31 October, 1999. Shultz, T.S. and A.P. Vanharreveld (1996). In- Braun, Jim. Friends of Rural America. Submis- ternational Moves Toward Standardization of Odour Meas- sion to the CHPPE. Brandon, 31 October, 1999. urement Using Olfactometry. Water Science and Tech- Braun, Jim and Pam. E-mail correspondence nology, Vol. 34(3-4) Pages 541-547. with Karen Priest re: social concerns surrounding World Health Organization (1990), European packing plant. No date. Charter On Environment And Health, W.H.O. Regional Broadway, Michael (Professor of Geography, Office, Copenhagen. Northern Michigan University, Marquette, Michigan). World Health Organization (1993),. Global Submission to the CHPPE, Brandon. Outline of tes- Strategy For Health And Environment,. W.H.O. Geneva. timony. 11 pages. 29 October, 1999. Abbe, Phyllis. The Spider and its Web. Sub- Bruns, Douglas (Board of Supervisors, Buena mission to the Citizens’ Hearing on Pork Production Vista County, Iowa). Letter to U.S. Senator Charles and the Environment (CHPPE), Brandon. 29 October, Grassley re: increasing crime and related costs. Sub- 1999. mission to the CHPPE by Jim Braun. Abbe, Phyllis. Brandon History Immortalized in Buena Vista County Board of Supervisors. Verse — From Proud Wheat City to Carnage Capital of Letter from Chairman and Members of Board to Manitoba. Submission to the CHPPE, Brandon. 29 Oc- Rembrandt City Council re: cost to build, and longer tober, 1999. costs of operating a new jail. Buena Vista, Iowa. Sub- Agreement for Waste Water Treatment Services mission to the CHPPE by Jim Braun. Between Maple Leaf Meats Inc. and the City of Brandon. Caldwell, Wayne. “Land-use planning, the Page 1, Recitals. Draft. 7 February, 1999. environment, and siting intensive livestock facilities Agriculture Canada, 1991. Prairie Farm Re- in the 21st Century”. Journal of Soil and Water Conser- habilitation Agency. Initial Environmental Assess- vation. 53(2) 102-106, 1998. Submission to the CHPPE ment by Jim Braun. Agriculture Canada. 1998. Assinaboine- Campagnolo, Enzo and Rubin, Carol. “Report South Hespeler Area Study. Ottawa. to the State of Iowa Department of Public Health on Registration. Issued to City of Brandon the Investigation of the Chemical and Microbial Con- Wastewater Treatment Expansion. stituents of Ground and Surface Water Proximal to Amanor-Boadu, Vincent. “Trade, Environ- Large-Scale Swine Operations.” Oct.-Dec. 1998. ment and Agri-Food Production.” Submission to the Clean Water Network and the Natural Re- CHPPE, Brandon. Overhead panels. 13 pages. 29 sources Defense Council. America’s Animal Factories

30 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba — Brandon. Collinge, D. 1998. Socio-economic Impact Hessel, Patrick and Michaelchuk, Dennis.. Assessment: Brandon, The Wheat City. Brandon: “Community Perceptions of Air Quality and Odour Assinaboine Community College. in Brooks and Picture Butte. Submitted by Dr. Patrick How States Fail to Prevent Pollution from Live- Hessel to the CHPPE. 1 Sept., 1999. stock Waste. Clean Water Network, N.Y.C., Washing- Homme, Paul. “Antibiotic Resistance and ton, D.C.. December, 1998. Political Science.” Submission to the CHPPE, COSDI. 1999. Report of the Consultation on Brandon. 31 October, 1999. Sustainable Development. Government of Manitoba. Ikerd, John. “Crisis and Revolution in Ameri- Dalmyn, Ron. Submission to the CHPPE. Let- can Agriculture.” Submission to the CHPPE, Brandon. ters to chair and members of Commission: 15 Nov., 29 October, 1999. 1999: 2 Dec., 1999; 28 Dec., 1999. Lawrence, M. and W. Bernhardt. 1998. Assess- Dalmyn, Ron. “Greed! Deceit and Justice”. ment of the Effects of the Maple Leaf Waste Water Treat- Submission to the CHPPE, Brandon. 29 October, 1999. ment Facility Effluent on the Assiniboine River. North/ Text of presentation. South Consultants Inc., Winnipeg , and Reid Dalmyn, Ron. “Critique of the Manitoba Crowther and Partners Ltd., Winnipeg. June 1998. Guidelines/Regulations for the Design of Sewage Prepared for the City of Brandon. Treatment Lagoons, Septic-Systems and Hog Manure Lewis, Paul. “On the potential for the pig Holding Ponds”. Submission to the CHPPE, Brandon. roundworm, Ascaris suum, to infect humans.” Sub- 29 October, 1999. mitted to the CHPPE, Brandon. 31 October, 1999. Dalmyn, Ron. “Critique of the Report of the Mallin, M.A. 2000. Impacts of Industrial Ani- Manitoba Manure Technology Transfer Mission”. mal Production on Rivers and Estuaries. American Winnipeg, 8-20 May, 1995. Report to the People of Scientist 88:26-37. Manitoba. Submission to the CHPPE. Manitoba, Province. Department of Agricul- Dalmyn, Ron. “A Presentation and Critique ture, Agricultural Guidelines Development Commit- to the People of Manitoba About the Hog and Slaugh- tee. Farm Practices Guidelines for Hog Producers in terhouse Industry”. Submission to the CHPPE, Manitoba. May 1994. Brandon. 29-31 October, 1999. Manitoba, Province. Department of Environ- Dalmyn, Ron. Presentation to the Reeve and ment. Environment Act Licence No. 2367 S2, issued Councillors of the R.M. of Saskatchewan, Rapid City. to the City of Brandon to commission Maple Leaf 4 June, 1999. wastewater treatment facility. 20 August, 1999. Dalmyn, Ron and Abbe, Phillis. Handbook for Manitoba, Province. Livestock Manure and Members of The Organization — A Provincial Coalition Mortalities Management Regulation. The Environ- for Responsible Resource Management. Winnipeg. March ment Act (C.C.S.M. c.E125). Registered, 30 March, 1999. 1998. Dickson, I. 1998. The Assinaboine River and Manitoba, Legislature. 1999. Hansard Irrigation: A Broad Perspective. In. J. Welsted (ed.) 136_s5\037-99.DOC and 038-99.doc. Maple Leaf Irrigation in Manitoba: Past, Present and Future. Plant Brandon — Environmental Hearings. Ques- Brandon. Canadian Water Resources Assoc. tions from Hon. Gregory Dewar (Selkirk) to Hon. Dye, Scott. Submission to the CHPPE, Linda McIntosh (Minister of Environment) on envi- Brandon. Typed presentation. 29 October, 1999. ronmental hearings, Sustainable Development Act Field Pictures. “And on this Farm.” guidelines, water quality assessments and environ- Burnsville, Minnesota. 1998. Video, 27:30 min. mental assessments. 3/4 June. Gustafson, Jim (Supervisor of Buena Vista Manitoba, Government of. 1998. The Envi- County, Iowa). Letter to Karen Priest, re: health and ronment Act (C.C.S.M. CE25): Livestock Manure and crime-related costs of IBP packing plant. Submission Mortalities Regulation. The Manitoba Gazzette. Vol. to CHPPE by Jim Braun. 27, No. 13. (O4/11/98). Ham, J.M. et al. “Animal Waste Lagoon Wa- Manitoba Pork Council. The Pork Industry — ter Quality Study”. Kansas State University research Growing and Working for all Manitobans. Submitted to report. 23 June, 1999. the CHPPE. 16 Dec., 1999. Hamed, Mubarak et al. “The Impacts of Ani- McGinn, R. 1988. The Climate of Manitoba. mal Feeding Operations on Rural Land Values,” by J. Everitt & C. Stadel. (Ed.) Brandon. Geographical M. Hamed et al. Columbia, Missouri. Report pre- Perspectives on the Wheat City. Regina.Canadian sented to the Saline County Study Steering Commit- Plains Research Centre. tee. Executive Summary. May, 1999. Moberly, Gregory. “Buena Vista County asks Hessel, Patrick. Print-out of medical abstracts IBP to pay for employees’ jail expenses”. Fort Dodge on the health of swine confinement facility workers. Messenger. Ford Dodge, Iowa. Submission to the Submitted by Dr. Patrick Hessel to the CHPPE, CHPPE by Jim Braun. 1 Sept., 1999.

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 31 Ni, Jiqin et al. 1998. “Ammonia emission from Neighbourhood. Sierra Club, S.F., Washington D.C. no a large mechanically-ventilated swine building during date. warm weather”. Presented at the 1998 American Soci- Sierra Club, Washington, D.C. Sierra Toolkit ety of Agricutural Engineers (ASAE) Annual Interna- for Industrial Livestock Activists. Club Factsheet: Pro- tional Meeting, Orlando, Florida. 12-16, July tect America’s Water From Factory Farm Pollution. North Carolina Department of Environmental Field & Stream. “Non-point Pollution: The and Natural Resources et al. “Workshop on Atmos- Quiet Killer.” August 1999. pheric Nitrogen Compounds II: Emissions, Transport, State of Colorado, Department of Public Transformation, Deposition and Assessment.” 7-9 June, Health and the Environment, Air Quality Control 1999. Abstracts of an International Workshop. Commission. Regulation No. 2 — Odour Emission. North Carolina Department of Environment Revised 19 Feb., 1999. and Natural Resources, Division of Air Quality. “Sta- State of Missouri, Department of Natural Re- tus Report on Emissions and Deposition of Atmospheric sources, Missouri Clean Water Commission. Missouri Nitrogen Compounds from Animal Production in State Operating Permit. No. MO-0117421. Owner, Pre- North Carolina”. 7 June, 1999. mium Standard Farms. 28 April, 1995; revised, 1 Oct., Okun, Melva. “The Public Health Issues of 1999. North Carolina’s Hog Industry”. Prepared for the State of Oklahoma. Bill No. 1175. Concentrated North Carolina Association of Local Health Directors. Animal Feeding Operations Act. Effective 1 August, January 1999. 1998. Paton, Bill. Letter to Mr. Larry Strachan, Direc- State of Texas. Subchapter B — Concentrated tor of Environmental Approvals, Manitoba Environ- Animal Feeding Operations. pp.321.31-321.4746 ment. “Comments on the materials submitted on be- Strachan, Larry. “Approvals Overview - Ma- half of the City of Brandon and Maple Leaf Meats Inc ple Leaf Meats Brandon Project”. Presentation to the ... Document 1. Environment Act proposal. Process CHPPE, Brandon. 29 October, 1999. wastewater treament facility for hog processing plant Stull, Donald. “The Impact of Seaboard’s Pork in Brandon, Manitoba.” no date. Plant on Guymon, Oklahoma.” Submission to Paton, Bill. “Comments on Appendix 10 - As- CHPPE, Brandon. 30 Oct., 1999. sessment of the effects of the Maple Leaf waste water Tait, Fred. “Expanding pork production and treatment facility effluent on the Assiniboine River — exports: Who benefits.” Submission to the CHPPE, A Report Prepared for the City of Brandon. June 1998. Brandon. 30 Oct., 1999. National Farmers Union. M.Lawrence and W.Bernhardt.” (no date) Speaking notes. Paton, Bill. “Response to proposed livestock TetrES Consultants Inc. Independent Technical regulations / Manitoba Department of Environment, Review — Maple Leaf Meats Inc. / City of Brandon Envi- Brandon Hearing”. 27 Jan., 1998 ronment Act Proposal Documents. Report to the City of Peto, Beth. Letter to Hon. Gary Doer, Premier Portage la Prairie. 0195-A-01. Winnipeg. September, of Manitoba. 16 Jan., 2000. 1998. Peto, Beth. “Citizens Hearing on Pork Produc- U.S. Geological Survey. Animal Feeding Op- tion and the Environment. Brief Report to Choices”. 1 erations: Effects on Hydrologic Resources and the Envi- Nov., 1999. ronment. USGS, Reston, Virginia. Workshop Agenda Phillipson, Martin and Bowden, Marie-Ann. and Abstracts. 30 Aug.-1 Sept. 1999. “Environmental Assessment and Agriculture: An Welsted, John (Ed.). “Irrigation in Manitoba: Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Manure”. Sas- Past, Present and Future”. Canadian Water Resources katchewan Law Review. vol. 62, p. 414-435, 1999. Association, Symposium proceedings, Victoria Inn, Pip, Eva. 1999. References to literature cited in Brandon, Manitoba. 22-23 October, 1998. presentation to the CHPPE, Brandon. Westman Community Action Coalition. Pork Information Alliance. 1999. Pork Infor- “Who we are, how we work, what we stand for, how mation Manual. Winnipeg. can you help”. Flier. October 1999. Red Stone Environmental Inc. Long Plain First Willis, Paul. “Niman Ranch”. Iowa. Video. Nation — Assiniboine River Protection Project. Final Re- No date. port. Saskatoon. ES-001B-99. 64 pages, with executive The Windmill Herald. “New manure plan pro- summary and references. July 1999. motes emigration of farmers”. 3 Oct., 1999. Reid Crowther & Partners Ltd. Maple Leaf Meats The Windmill Herald. “Tourism largest em- Wastewater Treatment Facility Pre-Design Report. Pre- ployer in Holland with 1998 ‘sales’ of 50 billion.” 25 pared for the City of Brandon. Winnipeg. July 1998. October, 1999. Sheridan, Michael. “A Time to Act for Family Wing, S. and Wolf, S. “Intensive Livestock Farms.” Video, 28 min. no date. Operations, Health and Quality of Life Among East- Sierra Club. Corporate Hogs at the Public Trough ern North Caroline Residents”. Department of Epi- — How Your Tax Dollars Help Bring Polluters Into Your demiology, School of Public Health, U. of North Caro- lina at Chapel Hill. 6 May, 1999. 32 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 33 Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans

Commissioners’ Report on the Citizens’ Hearing on Hog Production and the Environment, Brandon, Manitoba, October 1999

ISBN: 0-88627-222-X May 2000

CAW 567 OTTAWA 34 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans

This report is based on information presented at the Citizens’ Hearing on Hog Pro- duction and the Environment, held October 29-31 1999 in Brandon, MB. This hearing was jointly funded by the North American Fund for Environmental Cooperation (Mon- treal) and the Sierra Club (Washington, DC). Additional relevant information and documents were made available to the six independent commissioners who were present at the hearings. The contents of this report are solely the result of the work of five of these commissioners: Christine Common-Singh, Celia Guilford, Roderick Macdonald, W.J. Turnock, and John Welsted.

Acknowledgements

We sincerely thank the many people who presented information or subsequently made information available to the commissioners. The initiative and dedication of the members of the Westman Community Action Coalition and the Sierra Club Prairie Chap- ter in organizing and operating the Citizens’ Hearing deserve praise from all citizens of Manitoba. The skill and consideration shown by the Chair, Mr. Yude Henteleff, was a major factor in the success of the hearings. We also appreciate the advice on preparation of the report given by Mr. Nick Carter and the support provided by Dr. Kay Wotton, a Commissioner whose other duties prevented her involvement in the writing of this report. Our thanks also go to Manitoba Conservation, Manitoba Health, and Manitoba Agriculture and Food for their support in the production of this report.

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 35 36 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba Table of Contents

I. Introduction...... 1 II. Summary Conclusions...... 2 III. Recommendations...... 3 IV. Public Health ...... 5 V. General Demographic Aspects ...... 10 VI. Social Aspects ...... 11 VII. Economic Aspects ...... 15 VIII. Environmental Aspects ...... 20 IX. Evaluation of the Maple Leaf Meats Proposal ...... 24 Appendix A. Citizens’ Hearing: List of Speakers ...... 28 References ...... 30

Large-Scale Hog Production and Processing: Concerns for Manitobans 37