Every year tens of billions of animals are raised in terrible conditions in factory farms before being killed for human consumption. Over the last two years Lewis Bollard – Project Officer for Farm Animal Welfare at the Open Philanthropy Project – has conducted extensive research into the best ways to eliminate animal suffering in farms as soon as possible. This has resulted in $30 million in grants to farm animal advocacy.

Jobs focussed on ending factory farming

Problem profile: factory farming

We covered almost every approach being taken, which ones work, and how individuals can best contribute through their careers.

We also had time to venture into a wide range of issues that are less often discussed, including:

* Why Lewis thinks insect farming would be worse than the status quo, and whether we should look for ‘humane’ insecticides;

* How young people can set themselves up to contribute to scientific research into meat alternatives;

* How genetic manipulation of chickens has caused them to suffer much more than their ancestors, but could also be used to make them better off;

* Why Lewis is skeptical of vegan advocacy;

* Why he doubts that much can be done to tackle factory farming through legal advocacy or electoral politics;

* Which species of farm animals is best to focus on first;

* Whether fish and crustaceans are conscious, and if so what can be done for them;

* And many others