The Capitalist Commodification of Animals

While animal suffering and abuse have taken place throughout history, the alienation of humanity from nature caused by the development of capitalism - by the logic of capital and its system of generalized commodity production - accelerated and increased the depredations in scope and scale.

The capitalist commodification of animals is extensive. It includes, but is not limited to:

livestock production in concentrated animal feeding operations
leather and fur production
the ivory trade in which tusks are used for 'traditional medicines; or carved into decorative objects
entertainment such as in zoos, marine parks, and circuses
laboratory experimentation to test medicines, beauty products, pesticides, and other chemicals
the pursuit of trophy hunting, sometimes on canned farms and sometimes in the wild
bioengineering of livestock and of animals used in laboratories


The contributors to this special issue of Research in Political Economy provide insightful analyses that address the historical transformations in the material conditions and ideological conceptions of nonhuman animals, alienated speciesism, the larger ecological crisis that is undermining the conditions of life for all species, and the capitalist commodification of animals that results in widespread suffering, death, and profits. This book is a must-read not only for political economists, but also for researchers interested in animal studies, environmentalism, and sustainability.