Icky, Icky, Icky

Would it shock you to know that feedlot cattle are fed chicken waste? I thought it might be another one of those outlandish stories spread by animal activists (like me!) until I read the article linked in the paragraph below. Cattle in feedlots across the United States are routinely fed waste from the floors of commercial chicken houses. In fact, 1 billion pounds of feces, feathers, spilled feed, straw, dirt and anything else on the floor under the cramped birds goes into the food mix each year in feedlots across America. This means 10 to 30 percent of their diet is often made up of floor waste. That's sickening.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, processed feathers and feces are considered an acceptable source of protein in cattle feed. Additionally, chickens are fed meat and bone meal from cattle, which in turn increases the risk of infecting cattle with mad cow disease when the cycle revolves and the cattle are fed chicken wastes. Hmmm... I wonder what else the FDA thinks is safe for us to eat?

Regardless of your dietary choices, no one (animals included) should have to eat floor waste. It's disgusting, unsafe and inhumane.