Can Farm Animals Have A Life Worth Living?

Is the mission of Moral Eats pointless if all farm animals will eventually be consumed? The alternative, is that farm animals cease to exist. To me, it seems self evident that it is not in the best interest of the animals to not exist. Not everyone shares that opinion, but maybe that is because I spend my days with farm animals experiencing love, joy and affection, instead of an echo chamber of animal abuse and suffering.

Our animals have an all you can eat buffet, an endless supply of fresh water, protection from predators, freedom to interact with each other and are handled with care and compassion. Our dairy cows get milked whenever they want, our bull calves are raised on pasture as well as our turkeys and pigs. The industry is constantly improving, and the farm animals of today have better lives than the farm animals of yesterday. However, there is always room for improvement and Moral Eats is a catalyst for that improvement.

Farm animals are not simply born, suffer and then die. They do not only exist to feed us, just like gazelles don’t only exist to feed cheetahs. Farm animals are born to enjoy their lives, and they do.

A common criticism is that farm animals will be consumed instead of living their natural life span. But, what is natural, really? Prey animals in nature don’t die from old age, they die from predation, injury and disease, and they suffer much more than our farm animals do in the end. Farm animals are prey species, so the most realistic comparison would be similar prey species in the wild. A farm animal can’t choose between living on a farm or transforming into a human child. They could live on a farm, live in the wild or simply not exist any more.

In conclusion, it absolutely is possible for farm animals to have a life worth living, and improving the lives of farm animals is a much better alternative to them not existing at all.