North Carolina

Interactive graphic: See how impacts from NC poultry farms may extend for miles

By Susan Merriam and Sohail Al-Jamea
A map showing potential effects of poultry farms on neighbors
A map showing potential effects of poultry farms on neighbors Susan Merriam

Big Poultry: Part 3

Many NC poultry farmers get into the business because they are told it is a way to make a steady income with minimal effort. But it doesn’t always work out that way. The system leaves many farmers struggling to make ends meet. The U.S. Justice Department alleges that leading poultry companies have engaged in “deceptive” and illegal practices in their dealings with the farmers who raise their birds. Advocates say the system allows multi-billion-dollar poultry companies to profit at the expense of farmers and keep them trapped in a cycle of debt.

Industrial-scale poultry farms, each housing as many as 1.5 million birds, now stretch from North Carolina’s foothills to its coast. They’re in 79 counties and nearly every one of the state’s river basins.

What happens on these farms — some 4,700, according to an analysis by The Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer — is felt beyond their property lines, research has found.

Findings to pay attention to: Odor from manure and dead birds can travel a half mile. Simply being located within a mile of a farm can reduce a property’s value. Dust particles emitted from the barns can travel several miles.

This story was originally published December 6, 2022 at 12:27 PM with the headline "Interactive graphic: See how impacts from NC poultry farms may extend for miles."

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Profile Image of Cathy Clabby
Cathy Clabby
The News & Observer
919-423-6163
Cathy Clabby is McClatchy’s North Carolina investigations editor. She leads a team of investigative / high-impact journalists based at The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer. 
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