In pursuit of jobs and economic development, many rural communities have attracted large meat, poultry, and fish processing plants owned by transnational corporations. But what they don't bargain for is the increase in crime, homelessness, school overcrowding, housing shortages, social disorder, cyclical migration, and poverty that inevitably follows.

To shed light on the forces that drive the meat industry and the communities where it locates, this book brings together the varying perspectives of anthropologists, geographers, sociologists, journalists, and industry specialists. These experts show that, despite increased automation, meat, poultry, and fish processing remain labor intensive create problems for employees, host communities, and government regulatory agencies.

The authors explore the factors that sway industry and community decision making and propose alternate routes communities and meat processors can take to reverse deteriorating conditions and avoid potentially explosive predicaments.