The 30/30 Club: Metabolic Breaking Point, or Fulfilling Genetic Potential - Have We Forgotten about Animal Welfare?

摘要

Major consumer concerns exist over current dairy practices that relate to herd size and "factory farming", lack of grazing in our production systems, and the "hyper-production" of our dairy cows. If we are to believe animal activists and mainstream media, large-scale confinement dairy herds are places where cows are forced to milk around the clock, and individuals are pushed to the breaking point with the use of hormones and feed additives, resulting in metabolic disease, poor well-being, and premature death. Using three real herds as examples, this article discusses the pros and cons of different production systems and asks whether there is any truth behind these claims. Have we pushed the dairy cow to metabolic breaking point and forgotten about animal welfare - or is there a different story to tell?