Plant Chat: Gene Baur, founder of Farm Sanctuary
Gene Baur is co-founder and president of Farm Sanctuary, America’s leading farm animal protection organization. Gene Baur has been hailed as “the conscience of the food movement” by TIME magazine. For 25 years he has traveled extensively, campaigning to raise awareness about the abuses of industrialized factory farming and our cheap food system. Gene’s latest book, published by Rodale, Living the Farm Sanctuary Life: The Ultimate Guide to Eating Mindfully, Living Longer, and Feeling Better Every Day, is available for sale April 2015. His previous bestseller, Farm Sanctuary: Changing Hearts and Minds About Animals and Food, was published by Touchstone in March 2008.
What was your inspiration for creating Farm Sanctuary?
Farm Sanctuary was created to expose factory farming and raise awareness, while encouraging consumers to make more mindful food choices instead of unwittingly supporting an abusive system. Today, nearly 30 years later, Farm Sanctuary is more than a place. It’s a lifestyle and that’s why I decided to write Living the Farm Sanctuary Life. Farm Sanctuary has taught so many people the value of living in alignment with your core beliefs. It’s good for you, the animals and the planet. We all start somewhere, and this book helps people find their way toward living a happier, healthier and animal-friendly life.
Can you describe the concept and how Farm Sanctuary operates?
Farm Sanctuary rescues animals from cruelty, educates people about the consequences of their food choices, and advocates for reforms to our broken food system. We encourage people to live in alignment with compassionate values, and we model relationships with cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys and other farm animals wherein they are our friends, not our food.
How do you feel your efforts have played a role in raising awareness for agriculture animal welfare?
When Farm Sanctuary started in 1986, there was very little popular awareness or discussion about the myriad problems associated with factory farming. Farm Sanctuary has played an important role in drawing attention to the cruelty of industrialized agriculture by telling the stories of animals rescued from inhumane conditions. We have also contributed to growing awareness and societal change through undercover investigations and exposes, legal and policy efforts, and through market oriented and corporate campaigns.
Tell us about the key message in your book, “Living the Farm Sanctuary Life”.
A key assumption in the book is that most people would rather act with compassion, instead of cruelty, and would rather support a healthy, regenerative agricultural system, instead of one that destroys rural communities and the planet. The book provides practical advice and tips for living mindfully and compassionately, and asks readers to consider the question: “If we can live well without causing harm, why wouldn’t we?”
If you could share one major point with people about agricultural animal welfare, what would it be?
Violence to animals is bad for animals, and it’s also bad for people. Living the Farm Sanctuary life involves removing cruelty and violence from our lives and our world.
One of the tenets outlined in your book, Living the Farm Sanctuary Life, is “Engage in a Mindful Connection with Animals.” What can we learn from interacting with farm animals?
Once you discover the love of a pig, the friendship of a lamb, or a connection with a goat, you also understand how similar they are to the dogs and cats who live in our homes. Living the Farm Sanctuary Life is filled with stories of people who have gone from eating animals and working in the factory farming industry to developing that mindful connection that changes the way they see these beautiful and sentient creatures – as friends, not food.
How can people get involved in their daily lives with improving the welfare of agricultural animals?
There is a growing number of farm sanctuaries across the U.S. and around the world. Certainly hundreds of people, perhaps thousands, are involved in the daily care of rescued farm animals. In addition, there are individuals trapped in the factory farming system who actually engage in acts of kindness from time to time. A number of the animals who live at Farm Sanctuary were rescued by individuals working on factory farms. However, the largest number of people engaged in supporting animal welfare or animal cruelty are the consumers whose food choices impact the lives of other animals. Millions of people have gone vegan, while millions of others have started eating fewer animal products, and these trends are impacting the lives of hundreds of millions of farm animals every year.