It's time to wean ourselves off the fairytale version of farming | George Monbiot

Children's tales bear no resemblance to the cruelty of most modern farms, yet this image enables us to turn a blind eye to animal welfare and is exploited by the industry for profit - as Kerrygold's recent Guardian advertorial showsThe way that meat, eggs and milk are produced is surrounded by one of our great silences, in which most people collaborate. We don't want to know, because knowing would force anyone with a capacity for empathy to change their diet.You break this silence at your peril. After I published an article on chicken farming last week, I had to re-read it to check that I hadn't actually proposed the slaughter of the firstborn by terrorist devil worshippers - so outraged and vicious were some of the responses. And that was just the consumers. Continue reading...