The factory conditions for many people who work in the factory farms that produce our food is not something that approaches the lifestyle of the happy and hard working farmer of old.

Think organic, free range. Think fairtrade. Both tend to offer better deals to the hand that feeds you.

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser addresses this issue:

In his examination of the meat packing industry Schlosser finds that it is now dominated by casual, easily exploited immigrant labor and that levels of injury are among the highest of any occupation in the United States. ...Schlosser retells the disastrous steps of meat processing, and reveals the shocking truths about the typical beef and chicken patty, which are believed to be based on cattle and poultry who eat things such as manure, dead cats and dogs, and themselves.
wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_Food_Nation