Last night I happened to be watching a program on Public TV (Educational???) and it was about the huge cattle feeding yards and facilities in the midwestern part of the USA. It was so disgusting that I turned it off. They pack the cattle in yards, feed them corn grain and never, never a blade of grass. They live and sleep in their own waste, creating even more of a chance of infection/outbreak of disease. They lace their feed/grain with antibotics to ward off diseases. It is all about money here in the USA. Granted, we have (may have) had our share of burgers etc, but I would be willing to pay twice as much just to have the animals treated humanely while they are living. I don't eat beef that often but it will be a long time until I do again. I understand that chickens aren't usually any better off as far as living conditions go.
Again, its all about money.

Sorry for such a yucky story.