Can Slaughter-Free Milk Deliver What it Promises?

U.K.-based Ahimsa Milk is the first and only company that sells “slaughter-free” milk — milk that is produced without killing any cows, calves or bulls. But what exactly is slaughter-free milk and is it even feasible on a larger scale?

In conventional dairy production, dairy cows are usually impregnated yearly and pumped with hormones to produce as much milk as possible. But dairy cows can’t produce milk forever — and that’s when they’re slaughtered. Calves and bulls are also slaughtered when they’re no longer “useful”. In short, the lives of dairy cows are cruel and heartbreaking.

The horrible treatment of dairy cows is exactly why something like slaughter-free milk is such a great idea. Rather than face death when they can’t produce milk, Ahimsa Milk’s cows will retire to a sancutary to live out the rest of their lives.

Ahimsa Milk’s economic model is undoubtedly more humane — but is it realistic? Erik Marcus of Vegan.com has serious doubts. He writes,

Start thinking about the feed, veterinary costs, and housing costs involved and it’s clear that the future financial obligations entailed by a glass of slaughter-free milk dwarf its production costs. And that goes double if the cows are receiving high-quality veterinary care, and are given spacious accommodations during their productive lives and their retirements. Now also consider that at four calves per cow, two of those calves will be males. Are they really going to give these two males accommodations and veterinary care for their natural twenty year lives?

While slaughter-free milk is certainly far more humane than conventional milk products, it’s not exactly a realistic model for the dairy industry to adopt. In the meantime, though, perhaps dairy-free milks are your best option.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

richa b.

10:40AM PDT on Apr 3, 2012

why is everything profit and money? Is there an end to human greed?

Ahimsa milk is a good example...but humans should really stop free consuming so much dairy..:((

send a green star

Ruth P.

4:57AM PDT on Mar 15, 2012

I've heard of this. From an animal welfare perspective, it seems fine to me. However, non-intensive dairy farming takes a lot of land that could be put to better use.

Some areas in the UK are only suitable for raising sheep and goats, not agriculture or housing. Producing sheep and goat milk, along with wool, could be done in an ethical way on this land. :)

Kathleen Marie C.

4:53AM PDT on Mar 15, 2012

Coconut milk!

Kat H.

4:53PM PDT on Mar 13, 2012

Just don't eat dairy!

Kenneth D.

2:57PM PDT on Mar 12, 2012

interesting

Anne G.

1:53AM PST on Feb 25, 2012

Sounds like a marketing scheme to me and a bit unrealistic, also a waste. People do eat meat and drink milk and I don't see that changing any time soon.

Diane L.

1:47AM PST on Feb 25, 2012

Lydia, your comment was pretty much just repeating what the article said. We all can read that. It's stated as if it was repeated from "somewhere", not something you, as an individual, would have composed. If so, please cite a reference. When we "copy" words taken from a cite, it's unethical to merely retype as if they were our own words, and the first part of your comment most definitely was what I've "heard" before and while some of it is factual and certainly the situations in factory-farms and CAFO's, not all of it, and dairy owners do NOT refer to A-I as raping their cows. That's the term that PETA and like groups use. Your last paragragh is actually very contradictory. You might try re-reading what you posted.

Lydia P.

9:56PM PST on Feb 24, 2012

THE TRUTH ABOUT COWS

Dairy cows are severely mistreated by the dairy industry. They are artificially inseminated (which the industry actually refers to as rape) every year. They are fed massive amounts of hormones to produce unnatural quantities of milk. Their calves are taken away at birth and killed, either by being beaten, crushed, starved to death, shot, strangled or held in crates to become anemic and turned into veal. They never get to drink their mother's milk. She mourns for her child, crying out for it for a long time. Her udder is massive and often drags on the ground. She frequently suffers infections (mastitis) and ulcerations. Soon she is impregnated again so that she is growing a baby inside of her (for 11 months) and making huge amounts of milk at the same time. Her bones suffer, she often suffers paralysis, and she lacks muscle and substance to her body. This is one of the reasons dairy cows appear bony. They are selected for high milk production at the expense of their own body.She lives this way for 5 or 6 years and is then sent to slaughter.

Ahimsa means "to do no harm." Ahimsa milk has been around in India for some time. In India many persons have the unscrupulous and barbaric practice of forcing air into a cow's vagina, thus putting pressure on her bladder and udder and forcing every drop of milk down so that it can be extracted. This causes the cow intense pain. Ahimsa milk does not cause harm to the cow in this way. Neither do they rape the cows,

Mpa M.

4:01PM PST on Feb 24, 2012

interesting. thanks

Muriel S.

12:26PM PST on Feb 24, 2012

Thank you. It's quite interesting. I hardly ever eat cheese, never drink milk or eat butter, and I don't feel bad at all.