Consider the following 10 dairy facts, most of which are common to all forms of dairy farming:

1. 21,000,000 dairy calves are slaughtered for veal or cheap beef every year globally. (1)

2. Like all mammals, cows must give birth in order to make milk. Like human mothers, they carry their babies for nine months, then begin to lactate for the sole purpose of nourishing their young.

3. Due to extensive biological manipulation, today’s dairy cows produce up to 12 times more milk than they would naturally produce to feed a calf. (2)

4. Even so, virtually all dairy calves are stolen from their mothers within hours of birth in order to maximize profit. 97% of newborn dairy calves are forcibly removed from their mothers within the first 24 hours. (3) The rest are removed in a matter of days. On so-called humane dairy farms, cows are often taken within the first hour of birth as separation of mother and calf is considered less stressful when they have not been allowed to bond (see video clip below).

5. To keep them lactating at maximum yields, cows are artificially and repeatedly and forcibly impregnated year after year. The constant cycle of forced pregnancy and birth creates a huge surplus of calves.

6. Some female calves will join the milking herd. They typically spend the first 2 to 3 months of life confined in lonely hutches, fed a diet of milk replacer while humans drink the milk intended for them. (4)

7. Whether on factory farms, “family” farms, or small, humane-certified farms, male calves and surplus females are sold to be slaughtered for veal or cheap beef. The veal industry would not exist without the dairy industry. The following “high welfare” slaughter of “humanely-raised, pastured” dairy calves was openly filmed for public television.

8. Over 90% of U.S. dairy cows are confined in primarily indoor operations, with more than 60% tethered by the neck inside barren stalls, unable to perform the most basic behaviors essential to their well-being. (5)

9. Trapped in a cycle of forced impregnation, perpetual lactation and near constant confinement, most dairy cows’ overworked bodies begin producing less milk at around 4 to 5 years of age, at which point they are slaughtered. (6) In natural conditions, cows can live 20 to 25 years. (7)

10. Of the 9 million dairy cows in the U.S., 3 million are slaughtered each year at only a fraction of their natural lifespan. (8) Their worn out bodies become ground beef and restaurant hamburgers. (9)

What You Can Do

Don’t buy the humane myth. Feel-good dairy labels, like all humane labels, are merely so much window dressing. Eliminating dairy from your diet doesn’t have to be difficult; in fact, it can be downright delicious. Check out our Guide to Going Dairy Free for tips and recommendations on remarkable plant-based milks, cheeses, creams, yogurts and more. And please remember: all dairy farming depends on the exploitation and destruction of motherhood. To learn more about the injustices perpetrated even on small and so-called humane dairy farms, see our feature: The Spiked Nose Ring: A Symbol for All Dairy Cruelty. Educate others by sharing information about dairy production with them.

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(1) “Calf Slaughter by Country in 1,000 Head,” Index Mundi: Animal Numbers. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: http://www.indexmundi.com/agriculture/?commodity=cattle&graph=calf-slaughter

(2) Lyons DT, Freeman AE and Kuck AL. 1991. Genetics of health traits in Holstein cattle. Journal of Dairy Science 74 (3): 1092-100

(3) “Colostrum Feeding and Management on U.S. Dairy Operations, 1991-2007,” USDA, Feb. 2009. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahms/dairy/downloads/dairy07/Dairy07_is_Colostrum.pdf

(4) “Ag 101: Dairy Lifecycle Production Phases,” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: http://www.epa.gov/oecaagct/ag101/dairyphases.html

(5) “The Welfare of Cows in the Dairy Industry,” Humane Society of the United States. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/farm/hsus-the-welfare-of-cows-in-the-dairy-industry.pdf

(6) Albert DeVries, “Cow longevity economics – the cost benefit of keeping the cow in the herd,” delaval.com. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: http://www.delaval.com/en/-/Dairy-knowledge-and-advice/Cow-Longevity/Scientists-view-on-cow-longevity/Cow-longevity-economics—the-cost-benefit-of-keeping-the-cow-in-the-herd/

(7) Nowak RM. 1997. Walker’s Mammals of the World 5.1. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press.

(8) “Livestock Slaughter 2013 Summary,” USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2014. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: http://www.usda.gov/nass/PUBS/TODAYRPT/lsan0414.pdf

(9) “A Value Chain Analysis of the U.S. Beef and Dairy Industries,” Duke University Center on Globalization, Governance and Competitiveness, Feb. 2009. Accessed 7/21/2014 from: http://www.cggc.duke.edu/environment/valuechainanalysis/CGGC_BeefDairyReport_2-16-09.pdf