The world is continuously progressing, and biotechnology has found ways to create an array of products in higher quantities, at unparalleled rates. However, the repercussions of such technology have caused controversy: one specific area of debate has been the use of bovine somatotropin (BST), a growth hormone which increases lactation levels in cattle. Prior to 1994, BST was only available from post-mortem extraction from the pituitaries of cows, making it impractical for general use; however, recombinant DNA technology has permitted for the development of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST). Recombinant DNA can be mass produced, meaning growth hormones could be used in unprecedented quantities. Although rBSTs may be superficially beneficial, some evidence suggests that the use of them produces more harm than good. Because of its negative ecological effect, minimal economic benefit and inherent ethical problems (potentially harming both cows and humans), the use of rBST should be limited, if not banned altogether.
Although cows administered rBSTs may theoretically produce more milk, they tend to have more health issues than non-treated cows. One way this manifests is reduced pregnancy rates in cattle. Some studies have shown that rBST-treated cows are 40% less fertile than their untreated counterparts (Organic Valley, 2012). Inherently, low fertility negatively affects a herd, because maximum reproduction allows for genetic diversity. A limited gene pool in any species increases the risk for mutations in the offspring. Fortunately, not enough cows are currently treated with growth hormone for this to be a major issue; however, awareness of the possible risks in hormone treatment is imperative to maintain healthy livestock. C...
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...h potential danger as recombinant bovine somatotropin is an inexcusably reckless act.
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Both in and out of philosophical circle, animals have traditionally been seen as significantly different from, and inferior to, humans because they lacked a certain intangible quality – reason, moral agency, or consciousness – that made them moral agents. Recently however, society has patently begun to move beyond this strong anthropocentric notion and has begun to reach for a more adequate set of moral categories for guiding, assessing and constraining our treatment of other animals. As a growing proportion of the populations in western countries adopts the general position of animal liberation, more and more philosophers are beginning to agree that sentient creatures are of a direct moral concern to humans, though the degree of this concern is still subject to much disagreement. The political, cultural and philosophical animal liberation movement demands for a fundamental transformation of humans’ present relations to all sentient animals. They reject the idea that animals are merely human resources, and instead claim that they have value and worth in themselves. Animals are used, among other things, in basic biomedical research whose purpose is to increase knowledge about the basic processes of human anatomy. The fundamental wrong with this type of research is that it allows humans to see animals as here for them, to be surgically manipulated and exploited for money. The use of animals as subjects in biomedical research brings forth two main underlying ethical issues: firstly, the imposition of avoidable suffering on creatures capable of both sensation and consciousness, and secondly the uncertainty pertaining to the notion of animal rights.
Taylor, Robert E., and Thomas G. Fields. Scientific Farm Animal Production in Introduction to Animal Science. 8th Ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 200
Monsanto Company notes that there has been a 12 % population growth over the past decade, leading to higher food demands. The need for stronger fertilizers to sustain high quality products and improved production is critical. Monsanto Company’s products continue to receive widespread criticism and rejection despite their world domination. For instance, in a research by Heinemann, animals fed with genetically modified products were different from those fed with conventional feeds (2). This research provided concrete evidence on genetic modification of these animals
Imagine a life locked away in a cage with no form of control on your existence. It’s cold, dark, and you are scared. You don’t have a choice of what you eat, where you live, or how you are treated. You are unsure if it is day or night or what will happen to you next. You are locked away in a prison cell and you committed no crime. This is the life of a laboratory animal. Animal testing is the use of animals for scientific research purposes and experiments. It can be used for the findings of cures and medicines to testing new drugs, to understanding the behavioral psychology of the animals themselves. “Around fifty to one hundred million vertebrate animals, ranging from fish to primates, are used in experiments each year” (Lloyd). There are many different terms used to describe the research on animals but two main ideas. In vivo research is where the experiment is conducted on a live organism. In this case the animal is not operated on but rather tested in a natural living state such as exposing the animal to a toxin or chemical and documenting the side effects. The other is vivisection and can be closely related to dissection or surgical experiments on the living. It is an operation on a living animal for testing rather than healing purposes. This word is usually associated with negative perceptions such as torture, pain, suffering and death.
I wonder if all that milk is due to the genetically engineered hormone, rBST, which increases the milk production in the cow. rBST is a man made reproduction of the cow’s natural growth hormone, Bovine Somatropin (BST). Economically the increase in milk supply caused by the hormone could lower prices on dairy foods, an appealing attribute to consumers, and feed more people with fewer cows than ever before. As I watch these dinosaur-like creatures stand motionless, I cannot help thinking my new friends on the other side of this gate do not benefit from this injected hormone in the least.
Like antibiotics, hormones can be produced and placed in animal feed, for example Bovine Somatotropin, which is given to cows to increases milk production.2 The use of hormones and antibiotics in animal feed has been a controversial topic for many years. There are obvious advantages and disadvantages with the use of such products. Farmers see hormones and antibiotics as a major advantage as the increase their profits and gain the maximum out of their livestock.
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The Cow and Calf division of the Animal Health segment markets its products direct to cattle ranchers. Such products include vaccines, medications, and antibiotics to support healthy and consistent herds of beef producing cattle. It segmented the market into three distinct categories. Hobbyists herd less than 100 cows; Traditionalists commonly carry between 100 to 499, and Businesses are working with 500 or more. (Mohr, 1999) Time spent in the field with the ranchers was allocated based on the volume of product purchased by each individual. Those that spent higher dollar amounts received the most attention (in the form of personal visits, seminar offerings, and trial product samples).
Carruth, Allison. Culturing Food: Bioart and In Vitro Meat." Parallax 19.1 (2013): 88-100. Print. The. Chiles, Robert.
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This report explains genetically modified food (GMOs) and discusses the benefits and risks associated with the consumptions of GMOs. Genetically modified foods (GMOs) are foods that have been genetically altered using engineering techniques. The most common technique used today is called recombinant DNA technology; this technology combines different molecules from different plant species to create a plant with a new set of genes, a hybrid plant. Another recombinant DNA technology being used is recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST) an artificial growth hormone; this hormone is being fed or injected into cows to improve milk production. (ThefreeDictionary)
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