- #1
feathermoon
- 9
- 0
This is sort of an alternative to the 'would you eat cultured meat' question. What if we could engineer animals without conciousness (sentience)? Would it be cruelty free? Would you eat it?
Example:
http://www.wired.com/underwire/2012/02/headless-chicken-solution/
I find it terrifying in a way. Especially if the solution is just lobotomizing live chickens. That's like killing it twice to me.
Example:
http://www.wired.com/underwire/2012/02/headless-chicken-solution/
Architecture student André Ford has proposed a new system for the mass production of chickens that removes the birds’ cerebral cortex so that they don’t experience the horrors of being packed together tightly in vertical farms.
Each year, the United Kingdom raises and kills around 800 million broiler chickens for their meat. These creatures are grown in vast sheds with no natural light over the course of six to seven weeks. They are bred to grow particularly quickly and often die because their hearts and lungs cannot keep up with their body’s rapid growth.
Philosopher Paul Thompson from Purdue University has suggested “The Blind Chicken Solution.” He argues that chickens blinded by “accident” have been developed into a strain of laboratory chickens that don’t mind being crowded together as much as normal chickens do. As a result, he argues, we should consider using blind chickens in food production as a solution to the problem of overcrowding in the poultry industry. He argues that it would be more humane to have blind chickens than ones that can see.
But Ford goes a step further and proposes a “Headless Chicken Solution.” This would involve removing the cerebral cortex of the chicken to inhibit its sensory perceptions so that it could be produced in more densely packed conditions without the associated distress. The brain stem for the chicken would be kept intact so that the homeostatic functions continue to operate, allowing it to grow.
Ford proposes this solution for two reasons: To meet the rising demand for meat, particularly poultry, and to improve the welfare of the chickens by desensitizing them to the unpleasant reality of their existence.
I find it terrifying in a way. Especially if the solution is just lobotomizing live chickens. That's like killing it twice to me.