Factory Farms

The worldwide trend is to replace small family farms with “factory farms”. Do you know what is it really? You don’t want to know! Many people believe that animals raised for food must be treated well because sick or dead animals would be of no use to agribusiness. This is not true. The competition to produce inexpensive meat, eggs, and dairy products has led animal agribusiness to treat animals as objects and commodities. According to Professor Bernard E. Rollin: “Individual animals may ‘produce,’ for example, gain weight, in part because they are immobile, yet suffer because of the inability to move.” In the case of battery-cage egg production, Rollin explains that “though each hen is less productive when crowded, the operation as a whole makes more money with a high stocking density: chickens are cheap, cages are expensive.” Factory farming is for profit. In animal agriculture, this attitude has led to institutionalized animal cruelty, massive environmental destruction and resource depletion, and animal and human health risks. The most visible symbol of factory farming is the animal feeding operation (AFO) or concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO). By federal definition, an AFO is a facility that "congregates animals, feed, manure and urine, dead animals, and production operations on a small area of land." The major difference between the operations is based on how many animals are involved in the confinement areas with no pasture or grazing land. Highest efficiency is all above. The productivity and profits are maximized. The animals are kept in the smallest space possible and fed the cheapest food that will quickly and effectively fatten them up. As I know governments support corn and soya (soyabean meal) in general. That’s the reason why prices of these feeds are low. Although corn and soya are not healthy for neat, cattle, pig and for chicken. Before the growth of these feeds, especially corn and soya were not present in the earth in high numbers. These are not the natural feeds of animals like the grass. Thus animals remain backwards although breeding facilities ensure a constant supply of replacements. “Modern technology is employed whenever it is economically feasible.” Females are artificially inseminated rather than mated. Pregnancies are spaced close together to increase production. Mothers and offspring are separated quickly to keep the process moving. Antibiotics, hormones, and growth-enhancing drugs are administered to ensure rapid growth and to prevent deadly diseases. Slaughterhouses are run like assembly lines with an emphasis on speed and meat quantity.” How could we eat healthy meat? If you have a nice garden with enough free place… But unfortunately far too many have no idea where their food comes from, and many have no desire to find out. But to tell the truth each shopping is a vote for or against factory farms. Bio is the right choice! Every bite we take has had some impact on the natural environment, somewhere in the world. As the planet grows more crowded, and more farmers turn to industrialized methods to feed millions of new mouths, that impact will only worsen. But we are liable for it! Remember one shopping is one vote!

Read more:

http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/factoryfarming/

Farm Animals - Factory Farming - Farms, Corporations, Agricultural, Farmers, Cattle, and Facilities http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/2170/Farm-Animals-FACTORY-FARMING.html#ixzz1MuayrF3g

http://www.greenmuze.com/reviews/news/2338-excerpt-from-animal-factory-by-david-kirby.html

http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/animals.html

http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/2170/Farm-Animals-FACTORY-FARMING.html

Clean air with pump?

It is inevitable to reduce the amount of energy used in buildings to improve the energy balance of Hungary and to reduce air pollution of towns (settlements). Heat pumps are world-wide known as a heating-cooling technology being most effective in energetic point of view, thus they compose a key element of energy efficiency and of CO2 emission reduction. Related to the technology of today - and of tomorrow - it is important to mention as well, that not only the heat source but also running of the heat pump and the input energy can originate from non-fossil sources. Potentialities of my country, namely its solar and soil heat energy reserves and its biomass energy potentials in a wide sense and its high level intellectual capital are favourable to the popularisation of heat pump technology utilising renewable energies. I am still in the renewable energy business, join me!

Gas or what else?!

Gas network is extremely dense in Hungary. More than 80% of the flats have access to the gas network. This would imply that fairly large number of biogas installations could feed in biogas to the pipeline.
Unfortunately the practice of gas service providers in the near past discouraged investors of biomass plants. The conditions of linking to gas pipeline were so severe that large scale or medium sized biogas stations project were stopped, or re-designed to lower output and supply neighboring facilities.
Strangely enough the dense gas network and the easy accessibility of clean and easy to use natural gas is a barrier itself. As non-commercial users shifted to natural gas in large numbers and so made all necessary changes in their houses/flats, can not afford another investment to fulfil the criteria of Renewable Electricity Standard (RES). (Bohoczky, 2010)

The relatively large share of grey/black market in Hungary

It is a commonplace in Hungary that the relatively high level of taxation prevents many investments others are implemented in large numbers on the grey/black market. The examples of last years’ energy efficiency tenders targeting general public provide good examples. The available sources were limited both in percentage (usually 30%) and in total sum as well (often less than 50 000 EUR). Since Value Added Tax (VAT) is 25% in Hungary, it was often easier and feasible not to spend time and effort on an uncertain application but get goods on a grey/black market without VAT. It is a general consensus that there is a strong political and also economic counter interest between conventional or fossil fuel and renewable energy sources. (Bányai, 2010; Ádám and Tóth, 2010) Almost all sources claimed that there is a strong opposition of strengthening or helping Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) to grow among those circles interested in fossil fuel.
I hope renewable energy will become the only possible energy source for developing in every single politicians mind in the future.

Ádám, B., Tóth L., HGD Ltd. personal communication on 3 March, 2010

Wikipedia. Market penetration of district heating, http://en.wikipedia.org, last modified 10 Marc, 2010.

"If They Really are that Good, Electric Cars will Prevail"

“Unlike a hybrid car, which is fueled by gasoline and uses a battery and motor to improve efficiency, an electric car is powered exclusively by electricity.” Germany has already produced some electric cars, such as this BMW, but is lagging behind other countries in developing the technology. Angela Merkel has announced plans to drive up the number of electric cars from 20.000 to one million by 2020 and six million by 2030. She said that Germany must be a "market leader" in the new technology. The government would spend for it two billion Euros by 2013. It’s a nice plan but where will the money come from, and what will be the reactions of large car manufacturers. But she has ruled out subsidizing sales of electric cars, which still retail for a significantly higher price than conventional cars. "A premium to buy isn't the right answer," the chancellor said. Propulsive conceptions: “Cars emitting less than 50 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer will be exempt from the road tax for ten years, and electric cars will be granted use bus lanes and some free parking. Taxes on company vehicles will be reformed to encourage using electric cars, and the government itself plans to power 10 percent of its vehicles with electricity.” But to tell the truth Germany is behind with developing this new technology. And who is the market leader, of course China. Merkel herself admitted that it would "not be easy" for Germany to become a market leader in electric car technology. And Willi Diez, head of the Automobile Marketing Research Institute, told the Handelsblatt: "We must make sure that expertise remains based in Germany." I believe in German cars, tally-ho!
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,763049,00.html
http://www.hybridcars.com/electric-car