How little we know about dairy industry practices

A new survey has exposed how little awareness the general public has of dairy industry practices, with only half the NZ population aware that a cow needs to have a calf each year to produce milk.

To counteract this, SAFE has erected a thought-provoking billboard in the Auckland CBD with a cow and her newborn calf pictured together with the message, ‘Their first and last day together’. The text goes on to explain that, ‘She was taken for milking. He was taken for slaughter’. The campaign is accompanied by a video.

In the October 26 - November 1, 2017, Horizon Research survey:

• 50% of people either thought it was false or did not know that a cow needs to give birth each year to produce milk.
• Over 80% of the public vastly underestimate the number of bobby calves killed per year.
• There is widespread condemnation of the killing of bobby calves soon after birth, with 60% of people feeling it is not acceptable.
• When asked how much trust and confidence they had in the dairy industry to ensure bobby calves are treated humanely, 47% were unconfident.

“What came through strongly in the research was how misinformed Kiwis are about the truth of dairy production, something that is certainly not being given to them by Fonterra’s advertising campaigns,” says campaigns director Mandy Carter in this statement.
 
It is standard practice for calves to be taken from their mothers soon after birth so that their mothers’ milk can be sold. While some calves are transitioned into use for dairy and some to grow for beef or veal, vast numbers of these babies are killed at approximately 4 days old.

Slaughter statistics show up to a reported two million calves are killed annually in New Zealand as an unwanted by-product of the dairy industry.  Dairy sources suggest up to a million calves could be killed on farms as well.

“The grim reality of the dairy industry is that cows must repeatedly be made pregnant to keep producing milk, with many of their babies disposed of as an inconvenient waste product,” says Ms Carter.

"Over the last two years, there has been widespread public outrage at the brutal treatment of bobby calves exposed during investigations, with the issue attracting attention globally."

Horizon surveyed 1,033 members of its national research panels between October 26 and November 1, 2017. The sample represents the adult population at the 2013 census and, at a 95% confidence level, the maximum margin of error is of ±3.1% overall. 

This is a survey of the general public, not a survey only of farmers or those involved in the agricultural sector.