Product Description

"Slaughterhouse" is the first book of its kind to explore the impact that unprecedented changes in the meatpacking industry over the last twenty-five years - particularly industry consolidation, increased line speeds, and deregulation - have had on workers, animals, and consumers. It is also the first time ever that workers have spoken publicly about what's really taking place behind the closed doors of America's slaughterhouses. In this new paperback edition, author Gail A Eisnitz brings the story up-to-date since the book's original publication. She describes the ongoing efforts by the Humane Farming Association to improve conditions in the meatpacking industry, media exposes that have prompted reforms resulting in multi-million dollar appropriations by Congress to try to enforce federal inspection laws, and a favourable decision by the Supreme Court to block construction of what was slated to be one of the largest hog factory farms in the country. Nonetheless, Eisnitz makes it clear that abuses continue and much work still needs to be done.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14285 in Books
• Published on: 2006-12-26
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 328 pages

Ingram
With powerful descriptions reminiscent of Upton Sinclair's masterpiece The Jungle, this book takes a shocking, frightening look at where our beef, poultry, and pork are "mass-produced." Photos.

Customer Reviews

All To Real
In 1989, Gail Eisnitz recieved a letter from Timothy Walker, a well known whistleblower. His letter stated that he has first hand knowledge that a slaughterhouse (Kaplan Industries) was skinning live cattle. At first, she didn't know what to believe so she called the USDA. A USDA inspector called her back with the findings: no cattle were being skinned alive at Kaplan.
She decides to contact Walker by phone. When asked how he knew that Kaplan was skinning live cows, he stated that he was a USDA employee. He begins to tell Eisnitz a few more details.
In the US alone, over one hundred and one million pigs are slaughtered each year. Thirty seven million cattle and calves, more than four million horses, goats and sheep and over eight BILLION chickens and turkeys are killed.

Millions of chickens leaking yellow pus, stained green feces, contaminated by harmful bacteria and tumors are shipped for sale to customers.

At a Perdue plant, there is so much fecal contamination on the floor from chickens that it leaked into a workers boots and burned his feet so badly that his toenails had to be amputated. The company won't even allow workers to leave the line to go to the bathroom so they relieve themselves on the floor. Sometimes the chickens that are hung, fall to the floor that is covered with roaches, feces and blood. The chickens that fall aren't even washed off before being hung back up on the line. One worked said that he "saw flies on the chicken as it went down the line and maggots in boxes which contained bags that the chickens would be wrapped in." Occasionally, maggots were ground up with everything else and remained in the final product.

This is disturbing, and it should be. I hope that those who read this book will do something. Write to your senator or member of parliament, stop eating meat or even distribute this book among friends. Just do something. These are animals. They feel pain just like you do. Would you allow this to happen to a dog or cat? They why allow it to happen to farm animals.
This is a book that everyone needs to read. A lot of people believe or like to believe that their dinner arrived on their plate humanely. People need to know about wrongdoings like this. It's inhumane and it's wrong, plain and simple.

This is a must read for the meat-eaters of this country
This is a well written unemotional account of conditions and atrocities happening at several, if not all, slaughterhouses. Since USDA seems unable to conduct surprise inspections, one must assume that USDA is in cahoots with the meat industry, surprise surprise. The filthy conditions and working environment in the chicken slaughterhouse is unbelievable, but the information came from so many different sources I DO believe it. I was not a meat eater before reading this book, now I have earmarked pages to show to carnivorous friends when they come to my house. The filthy conditions alone are enough to turn anybody off eating meat, but add to that the incredible cruelty to the animals, specially those described at the hog slaughterhouse, makes one believe the workers at the plants have absolutely no feelings at all. This is so shameful and slaughterhouses should be investigated by somebody other than the USDA.

Slaughterhouse Review
Gail Eisnitz writes this book to tell the world what is REALLY going on behind closed doors. Even things she, herself was shocked to hear. In this book, Gail interviews current and previous slaughterhouse workers and USDA members. From food poisoning, to the USDA, to neglect, to contamination, money, power and cancer, you will be shocked at the truths that come out between the pages of the covers.

This book would make any compassionate person who cares about their health think twice about what they were eating--the author herself went vegetarian after writing this book. This book is a must read.

NOT PETA INSPIRED. GAIL DOES NOT WORK FOR OR DO WORK FOR PETA. THIS BOOK WAS HER OWN INVESTIGATION.

PICTURES INCLUDED.


By Jessica Sharp