Milk supports veal?

[girrafphant]

I am a lacto-ovo vegetarian (so I still drink milk and eat dairy products), but I am having second thoughts. One of my friends, who recently turned vegan, told me that she stopped drinking milk after she learned that milk supports veal. She said that in order to keep the cows producing the milk, they have to keep impregnating them- and then they kill the calves. I have honestly NEVER heard of this before; she was the first person I have ever heard mention it. Is this true? Does drinking milk actually support veal? Are there any brands of milk that do not support veal? Should I switch to soy milk?

[isowish]

This is true. The dairy industry supports the veal industry. Half of calves that are born to dairy cows obviously won't ever be able to be used for dairy (the males) and most of these males become veal. The dairy cows themselves are also killed when production declines, and you might want to check into the conditions they're kept in, as for the vast majority they aren't pleasant (even apart from having their calves taken away) - to say the least.

(I know this isn't what the thread is about; but obviously the same is true of egg production. When it is time to breed a new generation of egg-layers, half of them will be male and therefore 'useless' and killed.)

As a vegan, obviously I believe that cutting dairy out of your diet is the most compassionate choice. There are probably brands of milk you can look into that treat the cows LESS awfully, but the problem of calves being killed will remain - it's the only economically viable way to do it. I don't think you'll find commercially-available milk that isn't linked to the death of males, although you might find some that aren't linked to 'veal'.

here's an informative link: http://www.veganoutreach.org/dairycows.html

[Latinist]

For all moral intents and purposes, the dairy industry and the veal industry are one and the same.

The industry is pretty damn successful at hiding the real nature of its operations from the public. If you think about it, though, it's the pretty obvious conclusion. Profitability is no less the prime motivator for dairy farmers than it is for beef farmers, etc., so you can't expect them to be using moral methods when profits dictate otherwise.

[LyricGaia]

O.O I'm a vegan, and havent had dairy for about two years, and I had never heard that.


Oh my god.

[Werewolf Girl]

I really really need to kick the dairy. :spew:

[4EverGrounded]

Is this true? Yes, I'm afraid it is. :(

Does drinking milk actually support veal? Yes it does.

Are there any brands of milk that do not support veal? Not as far as I know of (even small farms "discard" of their males in some way :no: )

Should I switch to soy milk?Soy milk, almond milk, oat milk... anything that doesn't come from a bovine (or any other mammal) would be a wonderful choice.

[Pirate Ferret]

It wouldn't be economical for farmers to keep cows when they're too old to breed, and keep all their offspring. No matter how well a farmer looks after them when theyre alive, its always going to be the case =(

[4EverGrounded]

I really really need to kick the dairy. :spew: I think there's a lot of people reading this thread that feel the exact same way.


Excellent support thread for anyone that wants to get rid of their dairy (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=36734).

[isowish]

I think there's a lot of people reading this thread that feel the exact same way.


Excellent support thread for anyone that wants to get rid of their dairy (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=36734).

:rockon: this thread helped me SO much when I was giving up dairy. :)

[Werewolf Girl]

I think there's a lot of people reading this thread that feel the exact same way.


Excellent support thread for anyone that wants to get rid of their dairy (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=36734).

I'm there! :rockon:

[MrFalafel]

It wouldn't be economical for farmers to keep cows when they're too old to breed, and keep all their offspring. No matter how well a farmer looks after them when theyre alive, its always going to be the case =(

Yep. My FIL is a small holding dairy farmer. He treats his cows like they are part of the family. He stays up with them when one is sick, forgoes holidays and days off to ensure the cows are well looked after and happy. But then when the cows stop producing milk, he calls a man who comes to his farm, loads up the non-milk producing cows and pays my FIL some money. Those former dairy cows are then taken to the slaughter house for meat. So, even happy cows are only happy until the slaughterhouse man comes for them...

[SPJ]

It's true I'm afraid.

Check out Vegan freak radio episode 60. I believe it was episode 60, Bob and Jenna (the hosts) give a great argument for why lacto-ovo vegetarians should go vegan.

[Diana]

An article in the Observer in 2008 stated:

"The source of veal is the dairy industry: cattle are encouraged to give birth to bring on milk, but an estimated half a million male calves born each year are not needed by dairy farmers, and are mostly considered to make bad beef."

And an article from the California Farmer in 2006 (a newspaper for farmers) is quite chilling: http://californiafarmer.com/story.aspx?s=7996&c=11 where it says: "The relationship between U.S. dairy producers and veal producers took a big step forward recently when the American Veal Association became an associate member of the National Milk Producers Federation, while NMPF reciprocated by joining the AVA.

Because veal production is separate from, but linked to dairy farming, the two organizations decided that they should have a stronger relationship through membership in each other's respective organizations."

And also an article from the Americain Veal Association: http://www.vealfarm.com/edu-resources/downloads/special-product.pdf

To the OP: Cows milk is for one purpose and one purpose only: to feed baby calves until they are old enough to wean themselves. Just as cat milk is to feed baby cats, rat milk is for baby rats, and human breastmilk is for human babies. Once you've realised this, you'll be able to give up dairy in a flash and never ever look back.

P.S. There is a saying that goes: "Milk is Murder".

[Irizary]

But then when the cows stop producing milk, he calls a man who comes to his farm, loads up the non-milk producing cows and pays my FIL some money...

On his farm what does he do with the male calves?

Re. the title, milk doesn't just "support" veal - milk is the reason for veal. It may exist, but I haven't heard of a veal calf who doesn't come from a dairy farm. On every commercial farm, on the day of or within days of birth, every calf is forcibly removed from his or her mother, at great pain to both. They may cry and search for each other for months. Females replace their mothers; there is no use for the boys on a dairy farm.

[broccolichick]

Isn't VB great? Now you know. Now you can seek help kicking dairy to the curb.

[SPJ]

Isn't VB great? Now you know. Now you can seek help kicking dairy to the curb.

Here was the episode I was talking about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S90HZdjCqQA&feature=PlayList&p=F4CDF6C5BD27BF91&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=50

[girrafphant]

Thank you guys for all of your replies. You have really helped me decide to go vegan.

[broccolichick]

Thank you guys for all of your replies. You have really helped me decide to go vegan.

:rockon:

[isowish]

Thank you guys for all of your replies. You have really helped me decide to go vegan.

:nana:

[4EverGrounded]

Yaaaaay! :bobo: :nana: :pibo:

[Sevenseas]

Thank you guys for all of your replies. You have really helped me decide to go vegan.:up:

[SPJ]

Thank you guys for all of your replies. You have really helped me decide to go vegan.

Awesome, it can be difficult though. Apparently the casein in dairy has some addictive qualities.

[Hekaterine]

Glad to hear of your decision to go vegan. It was the same issue that made me realise that being veggie wasn't enough!

For those of us in the UK, by the way, where there isn't a veal industry, the male calves are simply slaughtered anyway. My DH was not 100% happy with me going vegan but totally changed his mind when I told him that.