The biggest concern, however, was whether or not the live cow or hog was diseased before it went to the processing plant. The medical term was called dermatoconiesis; the workers, however, gave the infection a more appropriate term pickled hands. The rise of industrialized poultry farming in the 1920s, however, was linked to several major outbreaks of disease, as disease is a natural byproduct of unnatural factory farming conditions. Because of its advantageous geography and proximity to transportation hubsnot to mention its vast supply of salt and cheap immigrant laborCincinnati became the pork-producing capital of the world, with dozens of pork companies emerging there. The answer, of course, was that the industry needed regulation. Workers worked long hours for little pay. The moment spawned a revolution in which academia and agriculture would merge. It was much cheaper and more efficient to slaughter cattle in Chicago and then ship their carcasses East instead of transporting the animals while they were still alive, but that could only be done in the winter months. "I aimed at the public's heart," Sinclair said, "and by accident I hit it in the stomach." In 1940, Jones perfected his design, Werner began building his trucks, and meat could now be reliably transported over the road for long distances any time of year. Using news reports, historical accounts, industry timelines, and other sources, Stacker chronicled the history of the American meat-processing industry, the largest segment of the United States agriculture sector by far. ITHAKA. Dangerous. As the wheels of American industries began to move, so moved the meatpacking business in Chicago 1900 and the conditions were unsanitary, unregulated, and clearly unsafe. He stamped his barrels with the initials U.S. for United States, but playing on Wilsons first name, soldiers joked that the provisions came from Uncle Sam. The name stuck and has forever since been synonymous with the federal government. By the 1870s, meatpacking plants were using technology like steam power, monorail trolleys, and mechanical mixers, choppers, and stuffers in factory settings where stationary workers doing individual jobs broke down and processed animal carcasses that continuously passed by them. And, if you had the misfortune of dining on cholera infected meat, (massive infection of the intestines), your chances of survival were slim. The 1905 story about the Chicago meatpacking industry that inspired Upton Sinclair's . With hordes of Homesteaders and bloody range wars making traditional cattle drives more difficult, McCoy turned to the burgeoning railroad industry and built a town called Abilene in a strategically centralized spot in Kansasit was Americas first cowtown. Box 515 Their living accommodations were essentially an extension of the hell that they endured during the day. He earned a B.A. Dictionaries thesauruses pictures and press releases, Conditions in Meatpacking Plants (1906, by Upton Sinclair). Over the 1950s, the UPWA gained strength thanks largely to its leadership on civil rights. Significantly, Calamuci writes, the unions interracial organizing meant the largely black workforce in slaughterhouses kill room were union members. It led more workers to organize with Amalgamated. In 1980, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) was formed and quickly grew into the countrys premier animal rights organization. republish under a Creative Commons License, and we encourage you to Its as old as the country itselfolder, evenand its history is baked into the history of America. in early 1905, had . Thank you for posting this article. The problems in the meatpacking industry is that it was very unsanitary. The meat had been packed in tins along with a visible layer of boric acid, which was thought to act as a preservative and was used to mask the stench of the rotten meat. 17, No. His work days were usually 12 to 15 hours, and this day, he was simply hoping to stay warm. Today, the Oscar Mayer company does more than $5 billion in annual sales and represents one of the most famous names in American meat. Argues that immigrants are vulnerable to racism and discrimination. Even the workers on the floors of the plants benefited. To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member. What Book Exposed Abuses in the 1900s US Meatpacking Industry? Another common skin infection was the tubular wart, but the yard workers called the disgusting infection cut worm. Because of the low wages, immigrant families, like many other familes, were forced to live on a family wage. The bridge between those living, feeling animals and the shrink-wrapped steaks and drive-thru cheeseburgers that Americans gobble up by the ton is the meat-processing industry. storytelling. In 1905, Upton Sinclair, a socialist journalist, published The Jungle, a book based on his investigation into the meatpacking industry. The two unions merged in 1968, and in 1979 they became part of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), which also represents a much larger bloc of retail workers. Meatpacking plants have become distinct hotspots for coronavirus outbreaks, putting a spotlight on the generally awful conditions and low wages that these plants have offered workers, even before the virus. Psychological Research & Experimental Design, All Teacher Certification Test Prep Courses. In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, which set the first standards for reducing pain and suffering during the process of transforming living, feeling animals into food. . document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Men prepare bacon at a meat packing plant in Chicago, circa 1955. Its $1 billion in annual sales was more than the annual budget of the U.S. government. Get your fix of JSTOR Dailys best stories in your inbox each Thursday. Under the system of rigid economy which the packers enforced, there were some jobs that it only paid to do once in a long time, and among these was the cleaning out of the waste-barrels. These rats were nuisances, and the packers would put poisoned bread out for them; they would die, and then rats, bread, and meat would go into the hoppers together. Making profits initially relied upon two major things cheap labor, and the absence of any type of regulation. Have a correction or comment about this article? A combination of both pleurisy and pneumonia, the nasty respiratory infection only caused vomiting, diarrhea, sometimes bloody diarrhea, chills, sweats, and intense pain in the abdomen. In 1779, the Spanisheager to drive their British rivals out of the New Worldjoined the American Revolution. In your opinion, what surprised you the most? Congress in 1916 passed a law mandating a grading system to classify different types, cuts, and qualities of meat that consumers could use to make educated purchasing decisions. Therefore, be sure to refer to those guidelines when editing your bibliography or works cited list. The 1939 Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act finally gave teeth to those reforms by giving the FDA the authority to regulate, monitor, and enforce safety and quality standards for food and drugs produced, sold, and consumed in the U.S. You may also like: Where America sends its planes and 25 other manufacturing exports. He died on November 25th 1968, st age 90. Chickens and hens were the first animals to be raised indoors in enormous quantities for egg production and slaughter. Stemming directly from the environment, workers had no choice but to endure these conditions. The man would not trouble to lift out a rat. Cowboys became hired gunmen as bloody Range Wars raged between cattlemen and the new arrivalsthe meatpacking industry was about to be transformed forever. The update required meat producers overseas to meet or exceed USDA standards in how their animals were killed to be eligible for import to the U.S. By 1800, Smithonce considered a friend of the poor and an enemy of the privileges of the richwas already being refashioned into a icon of conservatism. Small- and medium-sized family farms tasked with feeding a few thousand colonists transformed over the centuries into a juggernaut of billion-dollar corporations that wring profits out of factory farms that farmers a few generations ago wouldnt even recognize as being farms at all. The, Vascular plants are plants with specialized tissue that act as a pipeline for carrying the food and water they need. Workers, however, working in the wool, hair, or the bone grinding department, stood a good chance of contracting a serious lung infection, which many times developed into chronic coughs, then pneumonia, and ultimately death. ." Conditions in the meatpacking industry were poor. So, the meatpackers union was defeated through strategies of divide and conquer. The Chicago meatpacking business was a deadly one. But, Calamuci writes, that changed after World War II, thanks largely to the United Packinghouse Workers of America (UPWA), which organized the eras dominant meatpacking companies, known as the Big Four. The novel was an instant international best seller and prompted massive public outrage at the contamination and sanitation issues raised in the work, even though Sinclairs primary intent in writing the story was to promote socialism. The fate of the Western open range, the cattle barons whose fortunes were built on it, and the iconic cowboys who did the hard work of driving cattle for endless miles was sealed in 1867 with the arrival of one of historys most low-tech but consequential inventions: barbed wire. Farms across the Midwest shipped cows and pigs to Chicago for slaughter. He sent Neill and Reynolds to investigate the Beef Trusts meatpacking practices. Also like The Jungle, the article sparked widespread outrage, raised mainstream awareness of animal cruelty at factory farms, and sparked boycotts of fast-food companies driving much of the demand. Meat was a critical component of the food-supply chain, which was under enormous strain as the government struggled to feed its military, civilian population, and starving allies overseas. Linen yarn is spun from the long fibers found just behind the bark in the multi-layer stem of the flax plant (Linum usitatissimum)., IBP Avenue U.S.A. The Industrial Revolution influenced nearly every part of the economy, including agriculture and the food industry. The Europeans claimed that the meat caused pleuro-pneumonia and cholera. One passage read, In a word, we saw meat shoveled from filthy wooden floors, piled on tables rarely washed, pushed from room to room in rotten box carts, in all of which processes it was in the way of gathering dirt, splinters, floor filth, and the expectoration of tuberculosis, and other diseased workers., You may also like: 12 original companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (and what happened to them). Both these changes hurt the UPWA, which had its power base within the big companies in big cities. To that end, most Stacker stories are freely available to There were 85,000 pigs being processed there annually by 1833; by 1850, Cincinnati earned the nickname Porkopolis., You may also like: The best school district in every state. By the turn of the 20th century, meatpacking was Americas biggest industry by far. In 1957, the Poultry Products Inspection Act required the USDAs inspection arm to inspect birds before, during, and after slaughter and to prevent mislabeled poultry products from going to market. In April 2020, the Organization for Competitive Markets joined a growing chorus of industry watchers who called on Congress to finally live up to the promise of the Packers and Stockyards Act a century before and break up the meat-processing monopolies once and for all. They also replaced striking Europeans with African Americans. A century, and more, has passed since these dark days of the meatpacking industry. Along with many adults, children were permanently maimed or killed in these horrible work conditions. Sometimes as many as seven familes used one outdoor bathroom. . In the three decades between 1980 and 2010, the number of hog farms dropped from 660,000 to 71,000 for an incredible decline of 89%cattle ranches decreased by 40%. SOURCE: Sinclair, Upton. By 1900, Chicago was the center of the nationwide meatpacking industry. The houses in Packingtown were built terribly, and a lot of them were falling apart like the family's. The signing of the Homestead Act sent waves of bold and ambitious pioneers and immigrants flooding out of the eastern cities westward in search of land and a new start. It exposed the meatpacking industry by stating their vile practices not only towards their meat but their workers as well. 66-77. In early 1900, specifically, 1906, The Jungle by Upton Sinclair was written. First of all, one of the most important issues of the meatpacking industry in the early 1900s was the poorly way to kill animals. Those who lived returned to a land overrun by cattleleft to their own devices, cattle herds multiplied exponentially and by the wars end in 1865, roughly 5 million longhorn cattle were roaming wild in Texas. interested in Chicago's meat industry and related public health issues. There were the butt-ends of smoked meat, and the scraps of corned beef, and all the odds and ends of the waste of the plants, that would be dumped into old barrels in the cellar and left there. years, and even decades. Can the conditions that produced the fast-growing economies of the Four TigersHong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwanbe replicated? Chicago was the worst and biggest meat packing industry in the early 1900s. It represented the first time that companies had to list active ingredients on labels for things like drugs and cosmetics, and that meatpacking companies were forced to list any preservatives or other chemical agents used in production. 714 Words. It has given me some much needed insight into a character I am writing. Today many big agriculture states enforce strict ag-gag laws, many of which come with severe penalties and are even considered eco-terrorism under the law. The garbage stench, and the smellfrom the vile waste of the meatpacking plants, that floated down the Chicago river, had to be overbearing. It provided oversight, prohibited unlawful practices, made pricing structures more transparent, and stoked competition. ." Later that day, John was killed at work when he got caught in the belting of a large meat machine. But, as union researcher Daniel Calamuci wrote in 2008, it wasnt always like this. Brucellosis, anthrax, and the trichinosis bacteria are just a few more likely contaminants in the diseased meat. The Stockyard community was the residential area next to the stockyards, and the many meatpacking plants in Chicago. The need for economic growth and profits took precedence over the well being of laborers. This fact means employers have leverage over their workers, who fear being reported to the police. While groundbreaking, the act did not include birds or fish and made no provisions for how animals should be treated before slaughter. On the very first day, sales totaled $59not bad for a time when cuts of pork sold for between eight and 12 cents per pound. The not so lucky ones died. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. Required fields are marked *. "The Jungle shows the effects of economic hardship on an immigrant family in the early 1900 's. That is all . The impact on humans who ingested this meat was the passing of tuberculosis bacteria, a deadly lung infection. Children as young as three were often employed and forced to work long hours (sometimes 12-15 hour days) for very little pay. The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 applied the same standards to foods and drugs, notably banning the unsafe preservatives used to keep meat looking fresh. In the days before health inspections, notwithstanding any regulations related to the quality control of both animals and the processing of meat, a number of different bacterias infected the meat. Poultry is generally not included. If your organization is interested in becoming a Stacker By the turn of the last century there were only five or six mammoth meatpacking companies, and they controlled the majority of meatpacking in America. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Additionally, the meatpacking industry employs a large number of undocumented immigrants. You may also like: Best value big colleges in America. Until the U.S. Meat Inspection Act was authorized by the Secretary of Agriculture in 1906, meat-slaughtering and meat-packaging factories were storehouses for germs and disease. On Aug. 11, 1919, two former high school football rivals named Earl Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun organized a football team of their own. Keep reading for 50 key moments in the history of America's meat-processing industry. There was money to be made both at home, as well as overseas. One such industry that industrialization revolutionized was the meatpacking industry, wherein farm animals are shipped, slaughtered, processed, packaged, and distributed. By 1900 the city was the center of the nationwide meatpacking industry. Refer to each styles convention regarding the best way to format page numbers and retrieval dates. And, they felt it was time to drive them out of business. Despite the widespread use of brining or salting meat, some of the processed meat was not always properly preserved. Food was produced in plants that were ridden with diseases and vermin, while workers were exposed to unsafe labor conditions and horrible treatment. Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Upton Sinclair: Facts, Books & Accomplishments, The Muckrakers of the Progressive Era: Definition and Influence, Issues in the 19th Century Meat Packing Industry, Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906: Definition, Summary & History, Smarter Balanced Assessments - ELA Grades 6-8: Test Prep & Practice, Study.com SAT Reading Test Section: Review & Practice, English 101 Syllabus Resource & Lesson Plans, Middle School Language Arts: Lessons & Help, Literacy Instruction in the Elementary School, GACE Program Admission Assessment Test I Reading (210): Practice & Study Guide, OAE Middle Grades English Language Arts (028) Prep, Common Core History & Social Studies Grades 11-12: Literacy Standards, Study.com ACT® Reading Test Section: Prep & Practice, The Organization Man by William Whyte: Summary & Analysis, Fun, Interactive Writing Activities: Individual & Group, Recursively Using Stages of the Writing Process, Mammon and the Archer Discussion Questions, Working Scholars Bringing Tuition-Free College to the Community, Overwork, sometimes upwards of 12 hours a day, Poor wages, mostly drained by exploitative landlords, Exposure to contaminated water, feces, and other dangerous substances, Physically dangerous conditions, with many injured or even killed by slaughtering machines thanks to industrialists' cutting corners on safety for the sake of speedy processing, Slum living conditions where tuberculosis and diseases spread like wildfire. During this times people were often made sick and died either from working conditions or poor food quality. Chicago meatpackers understood that to survive they also needed to sell their products in the European market. 3 Pages. It doesnt take a big stretch of the imagination to realize that these workers would suffer, and did, a much higher rate of cardiovascular, respiratory, and many other illnesses. Meat Inspection Act of 1906, U.S. legislation, signed by Pres. In 1887, meatpacking was the second largest business in Cincinnati, behind only iron production. In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed into law a Congressional act that created the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The meatpacking industry has played a major role in Illinois history, from labor issues and employment opportunities to the growth of certain . Before the age of throw-away gloves and protective clothing, skin infections were a source of chronic concern. While workers unionized and went on strike to demand better conditions, employers used to divide and conquer tactics to win these struggles. Workers naturally objected to these conditions and formed unions to press for better conditions, threatening to go on strike if conditions were not improved. Along the way, the meat-processing industry served as a driving force in the rise of the railroad industry, the labor movement, trucking, and transportation. In 1865, Union Stock Yards opened in Chicago. Another issue was that the health inspections were not as serious as they were supposed to be for sanitary control. This novel told the story of a Lithuanian immigrant who worked in a filthy Chicago meatpacking plant. One of its most effective tactics was undercover investigationsoften conducted by moles who sought jobs in slaughterhouses to serve as spiesthat dramatically increased public awareness of horrifying and systematic cruelty to animals at slaughterhouses, meat-processing facilities, and factory farms. They had worn him out, with their speedin-up and their carelessness, and "Men who used knives on the sped-up assembly lines frequently lost fingers. Im going to read it in fullvery important book to understand American history and the struggle of workers and immigrant to assimilate. These problems persist to a lesser degree today. Species from nearly one hundred flowering plant families, along with some ferns, mosses, and liv, MEATPACKING began as a local business in the colonial era, but by the dawn of the twenty-first century it had become a huge industry. Brucellosis, anthrax, and the trichinosis bacteria are just a few more likely contaminants in the diseased meat. So, while the meatpacking industry has seen some progress since 1900, significant issues remain. The rise of fast-food culture would forever change the way animals were raised, killed, and processed, giving rise to the modern factory farm. The meatpacking industry was characterized by horrible sanitary conditions and the abuse of workers. [emailprotected]. The working conditions during the early 1900s were terrible because workers were unable to challenge their employers and the government was, at first, unwilling to do anything to address the problem. The Big Five were shown to make competition essentially impossible for smaller companies and to systematically defraud consumers and producers alike by fixing prices, restricting the flow of food, and manipulating markets. When one of its union locals at a Hormel plant in Minnesota went on strike in 1985 to preserve its workers high wages, the national organization declined to support it. 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