We live in a society of list makers: grocery lists, honey-do lists, pros and cons lists – the lists literally go on and on. In Washington, D.C., where the Alliance is located, it seems like every week there’s a list of some sort coming out cataloguing something. From best lobbyists to best non-profit associations, there’s a list for everything.

Which is why, as we approach the end of 2013, it is especially prudent to write a list detailing the dirty dozen in agriculture – those that misuse information and use fear to differentiate themselves or advance their causes. These are the groups, corporations or individuals who cause the entire animal agriculture community some serious heartburn because of their tactics, slogans or downright dirty deeds.

Media beware – these are the groups who you should fact triple-check the next time you see a press release or statement from them.

1. The Meatless Monday Campaign
Having just celebrated their 10th anniversary (who knew the campaign had been active for that long?), the Meatless Monday campaign tops our list of organizations that have their pants on fire. Turns out, the campaign was lying about its participation levels; pretty significantly, in fact.

A little digging by the Animal Agriculture Alliance uncovered the truth – that the campaign isn’t nearly as popular as advertised. Last week, the campaign announced that the Norwegian army had also fallen prey to the rhetoric. 

After extensively surveying schools that participated in the campaign but no longer do, multiple school nutritionists reported noticing a lot of food waste and a marked decline in children’s energy level on Mondays. No doubt Norwegian army doctors will soon notice similar negative effects and will be reversing their – arguably misinformed decision to participate – very quickly, just like many schools, hospitals and restaurants have done here in the U.S.

2. The Center for a Livable Future and Pew Commission
Dirty deed number two from the Center for a Livable Future (CLF) (Meatless Mondays is also managed by CLF) was the release of its five-year report card of the Pew Commission’s 2008 anti-agriculture report: “Putting Meat on the Table, Industrial Farm Animal Production in America.”

The Center hosted a press conference where it blatantly blamed “big ag” for the lack of progress on its nearly 28 recommendations from 2008. Well, CLF, I hate to break it to you but “big ag” has already made a lot of advancements, many of which are detailed here in a simple, easy-to-read report.

More than that, it’s really easy to sit in an office in Washington, D.C., and make (sound science-lacking, according to several sources) recommendations when you have little-to-no first-hand knowledge of how a modern farm is actually run. Perhaps the reason Pew’s recommendations weren’t adopted is because farmers and ranchers were adopting real recommendations made by renowned animal welfare experts, veterinarians and other scientists that were based on real science.

3. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)
Ah, HSUS. What is there to say except that this group is notorious for dirty deeds. When the top representatives, including Wayne Pacelle, Paul Shapiro and Matt Prescott, aren’t wreaking havoc in the media with their "disinformation" (dishonest information), they are waging war against hardworking farmers in court.

Just last week, HSUS announced its intent to join with environmental and community groups in announcing plans to sue a pig farm over manure spills in Iowa. Thank goodness this hardworking farm family has no intention of rolling over, saying in a response:

“We believe this notice of potential legal action from the Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement and the Humane Society of the United States is frivolous and totally without merit. Contrary to the notice’s inaccurate claims, The Maschhoffs has an excellent track record of taking swift action to protect the local environment.”
Good for you Maschhoffs family, we’re behind you 100 percent.

4. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA)
Thanksgiving is sacred, right? Not to PETA. Instead of supporting consumer choice and safeguarding an American holiday founded on tolerance, openness and sharing alike, PETA once again felt the urge to disparage and disgust those who dare to have different dining habits.

In a disturbing animated short reminiscent of Chipotle’s “The Scarecrow” (see below), PETA waged all-out war against the infamous Thanksgiving turkey, showing an animated boy who is mistaken for a turkey at a processing facility.

Luckily, the video’s viewers were less than impressed by PETA’s latest cheap ploy. My guess: they’re tired of their ridiculous antics, but moreover Thanksgiving is no time to be pushing an extreme agenda; it’s a time for family and friends, and counting one’s blessings.

Take a holiday, PETA – for all our sakes.

5. Animal Abusers
The next two dirty dozen members go hand-in-hand: the animal abusers and the undercover animal rights activists. Over the last several weeks we’ve seen a slew of undercover videos emerge from groups like Mercy for Animals and Compassion over Killing.

They’ve hit the airwaves and have shocked and horrified many of us. As a communicator whose job is to stand up for the industry, videos showing animal abuse make that job difficult. We often say that animal abuse is not representative of the entire industry, and I wholeheartedly believe that.

What’s shown in some videos is completely unacceptable. There are dozens of programs out there – from PQA Plus, to BQA to F.A.R.M. – that help to train employees and provide guidelines to ensure abuse doesn’t happen; but the ultimate onus is on every single producer to make sure employees are properly trained and guidelines strictly enforced.

I know animals are difficult and they don’t always behave how you want, but abuse cannot stand. If you operate a facility without a commitment to preventing mistreatment, do the industry a favor and find a different profession. You’re giving the majority of farmers – the ones who would never dare hurt one of their animals – a bad name and I, like them, am sick of it.

6. Undercover Animal Rights Activists
Not so fast undercover activists, I’m not letting you off the hook that easily. Like in every industry, there are bad actors, and those actors must be stopped. But the organizations that foot your bill, extreme animal rights groups, have made quite the business out of these video exposés.

These activists get hired under false pretenses, encourage or sometimes even participate in abuse, and then cut and run as soon as they’ve got something that will make a splash in the media. Weeks and at times months go by before the videos are released via YouTube or to the media – all the while, no report is made to the farm owners or local authorities. And what no one tells you about are the dozens of farms they visit – farms that treat animals properly – before they find anything usable.

Just recently, and for the first time, an animal rights activist who went undercover and recorded incidents of abuse at a Colorado cattle company was cited by authorities for animal cruelty, a Class 1 misdemeanor for waiting two months after she had stopped working at Quanah Cattle Co. to report the abuse.

It’s a punishment that’s well deserved. I just hope the District Attorney in Weld County follows through on these charges. It takes two to tango and not reporting abuse is just as bad as participating yourself.

7. The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
I’m sure we all remember the infamous FAO Report, “Livestock’s Long Shadow,” which alleged that agriculture was responsible for a greater environmental impact than all of transportation. Turns out, this report was widely discredited by several scientists including Dr. Frank Mitloehner of the University of California-Davis.

Unlike so many on this dirty dozen list, however, the FAO has actually issued a new report: “Tackling Climate Change through Livestock” in which they significantly reverse the findings of their old report. Specifically, in the new report FAO has reevaluated the livestock industry’s contributions to greenhouse gas emissions and global warming, and has come up with a new number: 14.5 percent.

The kicker is that the 14.5 percent is a global number – and not a local one. In the U.S. the Environmental Protection Agency calculates that the livestock industry across species contributes just 3.4 percent to GHG emissions.

Most crucially, however, FAO notes the key to reducing GHG emissions across the planet is for the meat supply chain in other countries to adopt systems that mirror those in the U.S. – more concentrated. I hope producers take this opportunity to share this groundbreaking research and talk about how your farm works to ensure environmental sustainability every day.

8. Chipotle
In August, Chipotle decided to beat the heat by airing an animated short titled, “The Scarecrow.” The hero of the story: a brave little Scarecrow leaves the evil, corporate farming conglomerate and decides to go it alone, growing only the freshest produce and selling it out of a small storefront in the shadow of the Crow Foods giant.

As ag’s indignation grew with the video’s views on You Tube, Chipotle claimed that the commercial was “fictitious” and only intended to “jumpstart a conversation about food production.” In all seriousness, it’s a nice sentiment but begs the question, if that’s true then why not engage with any industry representatives to actually dialogue?

Especially because at times, Chipotle, you seem to have problems sourcing the products (just check out its annual reports) you claim are the only ones that can adhere to your high standards. So was it really the best idea to shoot yourself in the proverbial foot and insult the very folks who ensure your restaurants have food to serve?

Last time I checked, Chipotle was not in the farming business, it was in the medium-sized burrito sales business. Which is great. Everyone has a role. But it might behoove them to try a little harder to at least entertain the opinions of their suppliers before turning them into extreme caricatures and making them the laughing stock of millennials nationwide.  

Next time, Chipotle, try taking the high road – the road with integrity.

9. Michael Pollan
Michael Pollan has without question been a thorn in modern agriculture’s side since he started opining about food issues for the New York Times. Pollan has attacked much about agriculture, but nothing quite as fiercely as genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

Forbes magazine recently chronicled Mr. Pollan’s sordid history of ignoring evidence presented in scientific publications, manipulating his editors at the Times to allow him to write a biased account of the facts surrounding GMOs, and generally promoting a “denialist” attitude on his social media accounts.

But it wasn’t Forbes that outed Pollan, it was Pollan himself. That’s right, Forbes magazine compiled videos, quotes and tweets where Pollan irrefutably talks out of both sides of his mouth depending on the audience (and who’s footing the bill).

Shame on you, Mr. Pollan, for your lack of journalistic integrity. But more than that, shame on your Times editors for not kicking your too-popular behind to the curb, especially after you admitted you were able to manipulate them.

10. Huffington Post’s Food for Thought
About a month ago, the Huffington Post launched a new site through a generous partnership with Chipotle. Called “Food for Thought,” the site features blogs discussing all aspects of nutrition, cooking, and food production.

Well, I should say, it discusses aspects of food production through a teeny, tiny, very specific point of view directly in line with Chipotle’s version of the truth.

Look, I get it. Chipotle’s footing the bill and you don’t want to anger “big burrito.” But whatever happened to journalistic integrity? Whatever happened to presenting all sides to an argument and letting the reader decide?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m an avid fan (mostly because it gives me lots of fodder for my own blogs), but deep down I’m disgusted by the mouthpiece that the “Huff Po” has become for Chipotle, and their very narrow point of view. If you really want to “raise awareness about how food is produced” then why not invite some of the fabulous farmer/rancher bloggers to guest blog and share their stories?

Might be, oh I don’t know, “fair and balanced” to actually hear the perspective of the hands that quite literally feed you.

11. Bully Bloggers – On Both Sides of the Aisle
No one likes a bully. Unfortunately, some never grew out of pulling girls pigtails on the playground and are still bullying as grownups. I give a lot of talks about social media and how it has changed the communications landscape. I’m met with mixed reactions; there are some that see the opportunity agriculture has to play a meaningful role in online interactions, and then there are those who see social media doing more harm than good.

I see both sides. While I’m a firm believer in the power of the written word – be it in a blog, in a Tweet or a Facebook post, or an opinion piece in your local newspaper – I know that sometimes we get carried away. The Internet is forever folks – and very often a pen is mightier than a sword.

You’ll never be able to stop the crazies who tweet heinous profanity, comment on your blogs and otherwise irritate and annoy you. But don’t – I repeat, don’t – stoop to their level. We in agriculture need to take the high road at all times; otherwise we’re characterized as the bully.

And frankly, we can’t afford to add bully to the long list of derogatory buzzwords used by agriculture’s detractors today.

12. Ag’s “Half Truth” Tellers
Last, but certainly not least, my dirty dozen list is not complete without a brief jab at those of you industry folks that are so terrified of losing your market share that you make misleading claims on your packaging.

When I first started out in the industry, I was practically laughed at when I suggested that honesty in labeling is the best policy. I was called naïve and unrealistic. Well, maybe positivity is my Achilles heel, but if we expect other companies, like restaurants and retailers, to tell the truth then we should start telling the truth ourselves.

We have to find a way not to disparage each other to differentiate ourselves. I firmly believe that we will feed the world by providing options; there’s a place for everyone to succeed.

It is my purest hope that in 2014, we can turn over a new leaf and, to speak frankly, cut the crap. Be truthful, take pride in your place in the industry and decide once and for all that united we stand.

Look at this list; there are already enough organizations spreading misinformation and taking pot shots at agriculture, let’s not help them by engaging in petty in-fighting and false marketing.

Let’s start 2014 by actually being transparent, instead of just talking about it. 

Emily Metz Meredith
Communications Director
Animal Agriculture Alliance