I’ve been thinking lately about the term "factory farm." I know it angers animal agriculture producers, and it hacks me off, too—I think because it’s spit out of the mouths and keyboards of agriculture’s enemies like a vile and evil thing. Perhaps we overreact. It’s past time I looked into this. Maybe it’s not such a bad thing overall. Texas Farm Bureau: Factory farms not so bad after all.

The Internet is such a handy tool. It’s almost like an information factory. It would have taken hours with my old Webster’s to find all the appropriate definitions, but it took only minutes online. Here’s what several online dictionaries had to say about a "factory."

• A building where goods are manufactured or assembled chiefly by machine. A building or group of buildings in which goods are manufactured; a plant

Agriculture, including animal agriculture, fits this to some degree. There are machines that plant and harvest crops. There are machines that milk cows and provide clean food and water to chickens and other livestock.

• A productive place: a place or organization that produces a particular thing regularly and in some quantity

This one fits, too. U.S. agriculture feeds much of the world—regularly and in quantities that other parts of the world can only imagine. A productive place? Darn right—productivity unmatched anywhere in the world

• A building or set of buildings with facilities for manufacturing. A building or other place where manufacturing takes place

I won’t argue with this one, either. Some parts of animal agriculture, especially, need buildings to protect animals from the elements and predators and to keep the feed and water clean.

Now, we need to look at a couple of definitions of manufacturing.

• Something made from raw materials by hand or by machinery

• The process of making wares by hand or by machinery, especially when carried on systematically with division of labor; a productive industry using mechanical power and machinery

Well, I’ll be… These sort of fit too! Animal agriculture producers take the raw materials—grass and grain—and "manufacture" protein for human food. As described before, there is machinery.

To be fair, there were mentions of "industrial" in some of the definitions. This is another of the "bad words" by which agriculture is often attacked, but it also hints at efficiency and cost control.

All these words—"factory, manufacture, industrial" and others—can be used in various ways to suit your purpose. There is some resemblance to factories in what agriculture does. Think of it this way. A great big chunk of the American population decided about 100 years ago they wanted to leave the farm and lead a new and different life. They did so in droves to work in places that fit the conventional definition of factories. The development of these places led to lower costs and ready availability of a wide range of goods.

The farmers who were left had to get more efficient or go out of business. All this happened. The result is now evidenced in grocery stores where Americans spend on average less than 10 percent of their income to feed themselves. The "factory farms" of U.S. agriculture produce a generally safe and healthy product that almost anyone can afford. These same factory farms create jobs—about 20 percent of the jobs in the U.S.

There would be consequences for outlawing this kind of agriculture. We can send everyone back to the farm. We can all keep some chickens, a milk cow and grow a garden.

Some do this. Not all can or even want to. Of course, there is room in the market for organic and locally grown food. No harm at all in supplying those markets of consumers who are willing to pay. Of course, many of these farms are "factories," too. There is also another choice. Pay more…a heck of a lot more, and learn to live with shortages.

There is some resemblance to modern, efficient and beneficial factories and U.S. farms. I’ve always wondered what factory farming meant. After my little research project, I understand it a little better.