--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't understand the notion that modern…" description: "\"I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross interference with nature. I think it ought to be g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg" --- # I don't understand the notion that modern farming is… ![“I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross interference with nature. I think it ought to be governed by the standards of how it affects the individual animals, just as we'd want to deal with institutions that deal with humans by how they…” quote by Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg) > “I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross interference with nature. I think it ought to be governed by the standards of how it affects the individual animals, just as we'd want to deal with institutions that deal with humans by how they affect individual humans.” [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern agriculture often harms individual animals, so standards should protect them as we protect humans. **In simple terms:** Farming should respect animal welfare like human rights. Key Takeaway Apply animal‑centric standards to farming. Themes ethics animal welfare environment policy Mood concerned reflective Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - legislation - farm management - consumer choices Key Concepts utilitarianism rights speciesism Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance animal welfare with food production? - What policies could enforce humane farming? A Different Perspective Animal rights debates may conflict with economic interests. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agriculture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Farming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/farming/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Institutions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/institutions/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross interference with nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-modern-farming-is-anything-do-to/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Many organic practices simply make sense, regardless of what overall agricultural system is used. Far from being a quaint throwback to an earlier time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/many-organic-practices-simply-make-sense-regardless-of-what-overall/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [If you think along the lines of Nature then you think properly." from the video "Carl Jung speaks about death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-think-along-the-lines-of-nature-then-you-think-properly-from/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Rather than just mimic processes in nature, I think we can harness the powers of nature itself and allow it to help us create.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magnus-larsson/rather-than-just-mimic-processes-in-nature-i-think-we-can-harness-the/) [Magnus Larsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magnus-larsson/) > [“it's natural to die...the fact that we make a big hullabaloo over it, is all because we don't see ourselves as part of nature.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/it-s-natural-to-die-the-fact-that-we-make-a-big-hullabaloo-over-it-is/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [We don't know nearly enough about the complexities of Nature. If we think we can eliminate natural ecosystems and substitute prosthetic devices, i.e. clean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/we-don-t-know-nearly-enough-about-the-complexities-of-nature-if-we/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [It’s natural to die. The fact that we make such a big hullabaloo over it is all because we don’t see ourselves as part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morrie-schwartz/it-s-natural-to-die-the-fact-that-we-make-such-a-big-hullabaloo-over/) [Morrie Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morrie-schwartz/) > [If you meditate on your ideal, you will acquire its nature. If you think of God day and night, you will acquire the nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramakrishna/if-you-meditate-on-your-ideal-you-will-acquire-its-nature-if-you/) [Ramakrishna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramakrishna/) > [The mistake is to think that clever technology can solve everything, but it can't solve our relationship with nature, which is where I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prince-charles/the-mistake-is-to-think-that-clever-technology-can-solve-everything/) [Prince Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prince-charles/) > [Most of us still believe in the intrinsic value of nature, but I think the first century of the environmental/conservation movement demonstrated pretty clearly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/most-of-us-still-believe-in-the-intrinsic-value-of-nature-but-i-think/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [Many environmentalists have failed to recognize that the preservation of quiet areas, places off-limits to noise pollution, should probably be a number-one environmental concern,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-hempton/many-environmentalists-have-failed-to-recognize-that-the-preservation/) [Gordon Hempton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-hempton/) > [I'm anxious by nature, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-russell/i-m-anxious-by-nature-i-think/) [Karen Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-russell/) > [Nature is all that we think we know plus all that we don't know whether or not we know that we don't know it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/nature-is-all-that-we-think-we-know-plus-all-that-we-don-t-know/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [I appreciate nature and I do think we are all connected. What we do to each other and our planet affects us all. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rock-cowles/i-appreciate-nature-and-i-do-think-we-are-all-connected-what-we-do-to/) [Rock Cowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rock-cowles/) > [Environmental problems provoke challenges about what kind of world we want, how important we think it is if something is brought about by human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/environmental-problems-provoke-challenges-about-what-kind-of-world-we/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) ## More by Peter Singer > [I have never really been fond of animals. I certainly wasn't an 'animal lover' when I became involved in the movement. I just came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-have-never-really-been-fond-of-animals-i-certainly-wasn-t-an-animal/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Knowledge is generally considered a good thing; so, presumably, knowing more about how the U.S. thinks and operates around the world is also good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/knowledge-is-generally-considered-a-good-thing-so-presumably-knowing/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The price we are willing to pay for safety cannot be infinite. It is distasteful to put a price on human life, but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-price-we-are-willing-to-pay-for-safety-cannot-be-infinite-it-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [ Nineteen thousand children \[are\] dying every day. Does it really matter that we're not walking past them in the street? Does it really matter… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/nineteen-thousand-children-are-dying-every-day-does-it-really-matter/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“The unchallenged assumption is that humans may use animals for their own purposes, and they may raise and kill them to satisfy their preference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-unchallenged-assumption-is-that-humans-may-use-animals-for-their/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Beginning to reason is like stepping onto an escalator that leads upward and out of sight. Once we take the first step, the distance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/beginning-to-reason-is-like-stepping-onto-an-escalator-that-leads/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Population growth is not a reason against giving aid but a reason for reconsidering the kind of aid to give.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/population-growth-is-not-a-reason-against-giving-aid-but-a-reason-for/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Well the real concept of basic needs if you cut it right down are simply the physical needs that are unavoidable for all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/well-the-real-concept-of-basic-needs-if-you-cut-it-right-down-are/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Dairy farmers routinely remove calves from their mothers at an early age so that the milk will be available for humans; anyone who has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/dairy-farmers-routinely-remove-calves-from-their-mothers-at-an-early/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Attempts to defend amusement parks and circuses on the grounds that they 'educate' people about animals should not be taken seriously. Such enterprises are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/attempts-to-defend-amusement-parks-and-circuses-on-the-grounds-that/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“A consequence of this alienation of humans from their own nature is that they are also alienated from each other. Productive activity becomes ‘activity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/a-consequence-of-this-alienation-of-humans-from-their-own-nature-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“I argued against the view that the only obligation we have to strangers is to avoid harming them; but even if we were to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-argued-against-the-view-that-the-only-obligation-we-have-to/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I believe that in this new world that we live in, we often have a responsibility, you know, to actually go beyond the thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-believe-that-in-this-new-world-that-we-live-in-we-often-have-a/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [It may be thought justifiable to require tests on animals of potentially life-saving drugs, but the same kinds of tests are used for products…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/it-may-be-thought-justifiable-to-require-tests-on-animals-of/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) [Explore all 310 Peter Singer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## More Agriculture quotes > [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/) [Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/) > [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [As the first Member of Congress from western Washington to serve on the House Agriculture Committee in over 50 years, I am proud to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-larsen/as-the-first-member-of-congress-from-western-washington-to-serve-on/) [Rick Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-larsen/) > [Conventional agriculture has never succeeded in feeding the world, and it's never produced anything good to eat. For the future, we need to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-barber/conventional-agriculture-has-never-succeeded-in-feeding-the-world-and/) [Dan Barber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-barber/) > [I would say my fraternity was nothing but a bunch of farm boys; we weren't really in the whole fraternity scene, but yeah, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-would-say-my-fraternity-was-nothing-but-a-bunch-of-farm-boys-we/) [Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/) > [I grew up in Italy, and our country is a country of great agriculture and food produce. It wasn't like I was urban and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/i-grew-up-in-italy-and-our-country-is-a-country-of-great-agriculture/) [Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/) > [Farmers, get out your sense of humor. Congress meets to relieve you again next week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/farmers-get-out-your-sense-of-humor-congress-meets-to-relieve-you/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [Because Iran understands Afghanistan far better than Americans do, making Iran a partner in a long-term effort to transform Afghan agriculture makes sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/because-iran-understands-afghanistan-far-better-than-americans-do/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [Sara Scherr and Jeff McNeely have given us a thoughtful, sensible book about a topic of great importance to the world. There is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-serageldin/sara-scherr-and-jeff-mcneely-have-given-us-a-thoughtful-sensible-book/) [Ismail Serageldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-serageldin/) > [People want development, modern thinking. They want to encourage and support research in agriculture and other fields.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharad-pawar/people-want-development-modern-thinking-they-want-to-encourage-and/) [Sharad Pawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharad-pawar/) > [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [When politicians talk of loan waiver, they are accepting that agriculture is not economically viable. They are giving a wrong signal that farming is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-swaminathan/when-politicians-talk-of-loan-waiver-they-are-accepting-that/) [M. S. Swaminathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-swaminathan/) > [Nitrogen-based fertilizers, which came into wide use after World War II, helped prompt the agricultural revolution that has allowed the Earth to feed its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/nitrogen-based-fertilizers-which-came-into-wide-use-after-world-war/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [Agriculture is one economic activity that does not obey the laws of demand and supply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/agriculture-is-one-economic-activity-that-does-not-obey-the-laws-of/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [More than a mere alternative strategy, regenerative agriculture represents a fundamental shift in our culture’s relationship to nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-eisenstein/more-than-a-mere-alternative-strategy-regenerative-agriculture/) [Charles Eisenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-eisenstein/) [Browse all 889 Agriculture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross interference with nature. I think it ought to be governed by the standards of how it affects the individual animals, just as we'd want to deal with institutions that deal with humans by how they affect individual humans.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Peter Singer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-modern-farming-is-anything-do-to-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Agriculture" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-modern-farming-is-anything-do-to-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/peter-singer-1001_animal_i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-moder_1611507.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross…” — Peter Singer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Peter Singer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I don't understand the notion that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-modern-farming-is-anything-do-to-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-modern-farming-is-anything-do-to-2/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```