If you needed MORE proof that factory farms are raising “food” you shouldn’t feed your family: 

Last week there was an odd spill on a rural highway in Wisconsin: red Skittles. However, even odder than the spill was the fact that some Mars Inc. factories sell their discarded candy as cattle feed.

RELATED LINK: Eating these cows can triple your rate of breast cancer.

The sheriff posted the picture of the spill to his Facebook account explaining that thousands of Skittles had been found spilled on a rural highway. He later updated his post (see above) when he found out where the candy was headed and how it had spilled,  “Due to it raining at the time, the box got wet and gave way allowing the Skittles to spill out on the roadway. It is reported that the Skittles were intended to be feed for cattle as they did not make the cut for packaging at the company. In the end these Skittles are actually for the Birds!”

Mars Inc. apparently has procedures for discarding “food” that isn’t fit for human consumption and claims that while some factories do sell unused product for animal feed, the factory in question normally doesn’t. In the case of these candies, the article reports:

“Company spokeswoman Denise Young said the Skittles were supposed to be destroyed because a power outage prevented the signature “S’’ from being placed on the candies. She said Mars planned to contact the sheriff’s office and the farmer to find out more.”

But don’t worry, a cattle nutritionist explained that food byproducts get used for cattle feed depending on what’s available in a given region and at a particular time during the year. In this case, the cattle wouldn’t have eaten JUST the Skittles, they would have been mixed with other ingredients to assure a certain nutritional profile. However, let’s be clear if Skittles is part of a “nutritional profile,” it’s not food I want to eat. Why? Because it’s not healthy- not for me and certainly not for a cow. Unless you ask an animal nutrition expert.
According to John Waller, a professor of animal nutrition at the University of Tennessee, a candy-based diet for cattle is fine. In fact, it takes care of two issues at one time; it keeps fat material from going into the landfills and it’s a nutrient source for cattle.
This “science” boggles the mind. Really.

Everyone should be aware of this. Please forward this. Cows shouldn’t EVER be eating Skittles. EVER.
Source: CBS and Eater