Industrialization of poultry and swine production: Implications for natural resource management

Animal production is moving toward an industry structure of fewer, larger production units that feature centralized control of technology and production processes. As the U.S. moves toward a more marker-based agricultural system with higher risks and fewer government programs, farmers will increasingly seek stability and direct access to a stream of technological advances through contracting and vertical integration. The market-based system will also increase the difficulties faced by an aging population of small-scale and family-based farm operators. Future downturns in the farm economy will accelerate the growth of industrialized agriculture.The industrialization of agriculture has been portrayed as the “third agricultural revolution” (Bowler 1992). The first had to do with development of seed agriculture, the plough, and draft animals. The second involves the largescale purchase of inputs from off the farm, especially fertilizers and animal feed. The third phase is more concerned with technology, the rapid expansion of outputs from farming, and external relations between farm businesses and firms involved with the processing and manufacturing of food. In this third revolution, American agriculture is undergoing a trend toward fewer and larger farms. There has been an increase in farm size, vertical integration, and