Fifty years ago, most consumers still had grandparents or relatives that lived on farms and were involved in production agriculture. The average consumer still had a direct “connection” to agriculture. That is not the case today, customers and consumers are asking questions about environmental performance, animal welfare, food safety and security and worker care issues. Animal agriculture is facing increased pressure and growing questions about the production systems and practices. Activist groups opposed to contemporary production practices are pressuring customers and initiating legislation and litigation to change the way things operate. Today, there is little understanding of livestock production and a general lack of trust in our practices. Animal agriculture is challenged by anthropomorphism, affluence, and agricultural alienation. This list of socially responsible attributes is growing and becoming more embraced by the supply chain each day. To be successful today, animal agriculture must understand and address the consumers’ questions of trust and their values. When customers and consumers ask questions about animal welfare and the industry responds only with science and data, they perceive this as uncaring and non-responsive. Even though animal welfare today is not a top-of the mind concern for those who purchase meat, there is a societal expectation that animals used for meat will be treated humanely (USDA, 2004). Those who do not believe animals are being treated humanely or have other additional agendas are seeking changes by pressuring consumers, initiating legislation, and litigating against certain production practices. The demand for socially responsible production practices such as animal welfare will continue to increase. These demands will eventually become industry standards as the practices initiated by the innovators and early adaptors are adopted. As time passes, socially responsible production will become a requirement for doing business. As we increase both the distance most consumers have from the farm and the level of technology we implement in food production, consumers will become more interested in social responsibility. That means producers will have to become more and more concerned about non-product specific attributes like animal welfare, environmental stewardship, the use of health products and worker care issues. Science alone will not prevail. It is not persuasive in a value-based culture. The list of socially responsible production attributes is growing and being embraced by more of the supply chain every day. Trust must be built between the consumer, processor, and the producer. Building trust will require transparency, professionalism, and third-party certification and verification at all levels of production and processing. The biggest trend in the food system in the next two to three years will involve increased focus by food marketers and others on how producers operate their farms. Specifically, outside sources will want to know a lot more detail about how producers care for their animals, how they care for the land, how they care for their workers, and how they produce a safe product.