"North Carolina is one of the country's largest poultry producers — and getting bigger. Large-scale chicken farms are spreading across the state. Government regulations have allowed these farms to get much closer to where people live. That's not just a nuisance. Neighbors say it's also a potential health hazard.

Craig Watts is an industrial chicken farmer in Fairmont, N.C. He contracts with Perdue and has raised birds for more than 20 years. Still, he says sometimes it's a struggle to meet the demands of the industry.

"They don't have to spend 24/7 with that chicken and have to deal with its waste. I deal with it and that kind of stuff. It's a good situation for them," Watts says."

Keri Brown reports for NPR January 24, 2016. [2]