Pig Business

Pig Business is a 2009 investigative documentary and exposé by environmental activist and former actress Tracy Worcester. The film presents the findings of Worcester's four year investigation into the hidden costs associated with pig factory farming. It advocates on behalf of small-scale farmers and discusses the topics of animal welfare, environmental pollution, corporate responsibility and food sovereignty. Plot summary The film begins with an introduction by Tracy Worcester in which she reflects upon the role that the countryside and small-scale farms have had on her personal and family life. She proceeds to argue that this cultural heritage is under-threat from large-scale corporations that, driven by profit maximization, have replaced traditional farming with a system that treats animals as a mere raw material or input in an industrial system. Worcester narrates the history and development of these large-scale corporations through the anti-competitive practices of vertical and horizontal integration. Through interviews with affected parties, as well as footage of campaign rallies and undercover exposés within factory farms, the film suggests that powerful corporations may take advantage of a monopoly position by acting in an unethical manner. It states that because the external costs of intensive animal farming are not taken into consideration by consumers, the industry constitutes an example of market failure. Of particular focus is the expansion of food giant Smithfield Foods within Poland, a location selected for its low costs and strategic access to the European Union market, following Smithfield's acquisition of the former state-owned meat producer Animex Foods in 1999. Drawing on testimony from Polish academics, politicians, industry leaders, farmers and villagers, the film argues that poor corporate regulation has resulted in a number of human and environmental disasters within Poland. Specifically, Animex is accused of causing harm to human health through the over-application of pig slurry as an agricultural fertilizer, as well as of antibiotic misuse within factory farms. Worcester further suggests that Smithfield has influenced government legislation through the sponsoring of sympathetic politicians with financial grants.