Chapter 7. "Cogs in the Great Machine"

What changes did IBP introduce to the meat packing industry?
-The new system of IBP depended on cheap and powerless workforce. When the fast food era was just beginning, IBP became the meat packing company that had "fast food mentality, obsessed with throughput, efficiency, centralization, and control" (page 154) A.D. Anderson says, "We've tried to take the skill out of every step." (also on page 154) I feel Anderson is trying to say that IBP is limiting the amount of education needed to be a meat packer.
What were the links between IBP and organized crime?
-The links between IBP and organized crimes were bribes. IBP and Currier J. Holman were tried and convicted in 1974. They were tried for bribing union leaders and meat wholesalers. The Judge who convicted them, Judge Burton Roberts, fined IBP seven thousand dollars but did not punish Holman.
What is the impact on small communities of having a meat packing firm?
-Meat packing firms have had a strong negative impact on small communities. Crimes rates run extremely high and illegal drugs are being distributed near meat packing firms. For example, in Nebraska, a town named Lexington was a "Norman Rockwell" type of painting. There were picket fences and lush shade trees. Then, a meat packing firm was opened. The town then had crimes such as drive-by shootings. There were also illegal drugs being sold and dispersed. Small towns also started to have a nasty smell. One Lexington resident says they have three types of odors, "burning hair and blood, that greasy smell , and the odor of rotten eggs." This seems very unfortunate to me because this once ideal town has been turned into a dump because of the location of the meat packing plant.