American Rancher Case Study

1306 Words6 Pages
The Survival of the American Rancher The American rancher is a dying breed and is slowly becoming extinct. Today’s generation forgets that this profession was once the backbone of our great nation. It is sad because these men, and possibly some women, were once revered and seen as “symbols of freedom and self-reliance” (Schlosser, p. 135). The facts show that ranchers are disappearing at an alarming rate, and these individuals have been replaced by the consolidation of the meatpacking industry, which has been exacerbated by the growth of the fast-food chains (Schlosser, p. 135). It is difficult for independent ranchers to compete with these large corporations. Given the apparent unlimited funds of the large corporate meatpacking organizations,…show more content…
Mike Callicrate believes in what he is doing, and he is passionate about the products produced by Ranch Foods Direct. Callicrate knows that if more people experience his products and become educated about contamination, plus the dangers of hormones, antibiotics, and preservatives known to be in the products of the larger meat packing firms, then these individuals will become repeat customers. Providing natural and healthy meat products is the foundation Callicrate has built RFD upon. “For one thing says Callicrate, our meat is not raised with any continuously fed antibiotics or artificial growth hormones, and the production process is slower, cleaner and more carefully monitored than you would ever see in high-speed packing plants” (RFD.com). RFD uses the best local ingredients available for their strict feeding regimen while abiding by all generally accepted sustainable and humane procedures. No growth hormones or antibiotics are used, which leads to a bacterial resistance of human medicine and no animal by-products are used when feeding the cattle (RFD.com). RFD’s products are produced under a stringent set of rules that results in products surpassing other brands in quality, and Callicrate proudly asserts, “Our beef is carefully monitored all the way from the farm gate to the…show more content…
environmental, food safety and labor standards (RFD.com). Eric Schlosser points out in his book Fast Food Nation that, “Every day in the United States, roughly 200,000 people are sickened from foodbourne disease, 900 are hospitalized, and fourteen die” (p. 195). Another staggering statistic pointed out by Schlosser in his book Fast Food Nation is that, “More than a quarter of the American population suffers a bout of food poisoning each year” (p. 195). A government health official, who desired to remain anonymous, compared the hygiene of the large meatpacking companies to that of a crowded European city during The Middle Ages, when the public dumped excrement and urine out of the windows of their homes, raw sewage flowed in the streets, and epidemics were rampant (Schlosser,
Open Document