About CFOs

Definition

The Agricultural Operation Practices Act defines a confined feeding operation as:

“Fenced or enclosed land or buildings where livestock are confined for the purpose of growing, sustaining, finishing or breeding by means other than grazing and any other building or structure directly related to that purpose but does not include residences, livestock seasonal feeding and bedding sites, equestrian stables, auction markets, race tracks or exhibition grounds.”

What this really means

Many of today’s farms are actually industrial facilities, not the peaceful, idyllic family farms most Canadians think of. These factory farms are also known as confined feeding operations (CFOs) or intensive livestock operations (ILOs). Common practices emphasize high volume and profit with minimal regard for human health, safe food, the environment, humane treatment of animals, and the rural economy—in other words, factory farms are not sustainable.

The definition of a factory farm varies, depending on where you are; however, these industrial facilities share many of the following characteristics:

  1. Hundreds to thousands of animals (mainly cattle, pigs, chickens or turkeys) confined tightly together and provided little or no access to sunlight, fresh air or room for natural movement.
  2. Public health problems, including the overuse of antibiotics and food borne illness.
  3. Liquid waste storage systems called “lagoons” and solid manure storage piles which can be subjected to runoff.
  4. Confined living environment.
  5. The corporation may own or controls the factory farm may also own the feed company, slaughterhouse, and final stages of production (referred to as vertical integration). Vertical integration absolves the corporation of any environmental responsibility.
  6. Through contract growing, a remote corporation controls all aspects of raising the animals. The livestock owner does not manage the day-to-day operations of the facility. The farmer is left with the risk, debt payments on barns and facilities, waste, dead animal disposal, and clean up. This means that the farmer who raises the animals is left with all of the environmental consequences.
  7. A decrease in property values.

Rural municipalities began denying CFO proposals due to public concern over health and environmental issues. Stating, “This is not the way we do business”, the government eliminated the power of local authorities to approve CFOs. This was done despite overwhelming support for the retention of local decision making processes, as was expressed in public hearings organized by the government throughout the province.

Democratically-elected and accountable decision makers were replaced with government appointed and unaccountable bureaucrats.

The Agricultural Operation Practices Act (AOPA) is the legislation that governs over CFOs.