Patrick J Battuello

Archive for the ‘Cows’ Category

Be Kind, Eat More Veal (British Rose, That Is)

In Cows, Veal on July 28, 2011 at 12:51 pm

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, food columnist for The Guardian, writes, “To be honest, if you drink milk or eat cheese, it’s crueler not to eat it [rose veal].” His logic goes something like this: As an inextricable byproduct of Big Dairy, the surviving male calves fated to become veal will either be raised intensively or humanely (as defined by rose veal proponents, of course). So, if you don’t support a system whereby “calves live in small groups, with deep straw bedding and access to a varied diet that leads to their distinctive pink meat,” then you (vegans excepted) are indirectly sentencing those poor bovine babies to a horrid existence or immediate death. Interesting, but well-informed?

Factory farming has grown highly specialized over the years. With beef-cattle moms having beef-cattle babies, the dairy calves (who must be made in order for milk to flow) need to find a place in the market. Females are either slaughtered immediately or raised as replacements for their mothers. Males become breeder bulls (though artificial insemination is the preferred method) or are sold to veal producers. In all cases, newborns are usually torn from their mothers within the first 24 hours (natural weaning takes eight months).

On (or in, as the case may be) the traditional veal farm (especially in the U.S.: video of Mendes Ranch in California), a calf will spend his short (4-5 months), miserable life in a tiny crate. Tethered at the neck (to make him more manageable), with barely enough room to lie down (but usually not enough to turn around), and fed a liquid formula-like diet that facilitates rapid weight gain, the immobilized calf becomes borderline anemic in order to produce a pale, tender cut of meat.

That said, there are two obvious problems with Fearnley-Whittingstall’s position. First, his rose-tinted praise notwithstanding, all veal production necessarily involves a negation of the calf’s natural wants and desires; by its very nature, commodification of a living, breathing, feeling being is cruel. And it seems to me that saying we owe them a decent six months is simply a rationalization to enjoy veal. Besides, how perverse is suggesting (encouraging) meat consumption to an ethical vegetarian? So while conceding that the open pen is more humane than the crate, I would argue that short of veganism, an immediate, painless euthanasia of the newborn is the most compassionate course.

Second, what if everyone started eating British Rose? Would their self-proclaimed humane system be sustainable? Enormous demand for affordable meat is precisely why pigs and chickens are treated as widgets. With worldwide demand expected to double by 2050, producers must mass produce. In other words, factory farming is here to stay (unless, of course, veganism alters the paradigm).

And finally, in a fact that Mr. Fearnley-Whittingstall conveniently ignores, every veal calf, rose and white alike, will suffer the same transport distress and terrifyingly violent slaughterhouse end. Is fattening them up just so they can be shackled, slashed, and bled truly the “less cruel” route?

Sadism at Conklin Dairy

In Activism, Cows on July 11, 2011 at 2:54 am

Sometimes, words are not necessary. After previewing the following footage, I can only echo Dr. Bernard Rollin’s analysis (and that of other experts): “This is probably the most gratuitous, sustained, sadistic animal abuse I have ever seen. The video depicts calculated, deliberate cruelty, based not on momentary rage but on taking pleasure through causing pain to cows and calves who are defenseless. In my opinion, the individuals shown are twisted and dangerous.” This video was shot in April-May 2010 at Conklin Dairy Farm (Ohio) by Mercy For Animals (MFA). It is extremely graphic.

Billy Joe Gregg Jr., 25, was the first from Conklin to be arrested. He is charged with 12 counts of animal cruelty; all are misdemeanors because in Ohio (and NY) farm animals are not companion animals. The laws almost always defer to common industry practice. But when presented with wanton brutality, authorities are compelled to act. Mr. Gregg, by the way, was also fired.

Conklin, of course, is shocked and assures that they “will not condone animal abuse on [their] farm.” The video “shows animal care that is clearly inconsistent with the high standards we set for our farm and its workers, and we find the specific mistreatment shown on the video to be reprehensible and unacceptable.” Sorry, but that self-censure lacks gravity and outrage. The company also insists they are cooperating fully and “will institute immediate retraining of all those who remain on the farm and who work with our animals.” One cannot help but wonder if training and supervision existed while Gregg was employed there.

Like clockwork, the industry offers perfunctory self-defense and the occasional counter-punch. An Ohio Livestock Coalition spokesman calls the video “disgusting” but still dismisses it as unrepresentative: (10TV, 5/26/10) “Anyone who’s trying to suggest that is normal behavior, or business as usual at Ohio’s dairy farms, have it very wrong. Clearly, I think we have a situation where maybe animal rights activists or others are trying to advance an agenda…”

We owe a debt of gratitude to groups like MFA and to the individuals who exhibit uncommon courage and restraint in the presence of evil. Before activists began documenting life on modern industrial farms, much of the public lived under a veil of ignorance. In the age of viral video-transmissions, no excuses remain. These undercover investigations, it should be noted, are not infrequent (other MFA work, NY’s Willet Dairy) and perhaps only limited by an availability of extraordinary persons and the industry’s heightened sensitivity to infiltration.

Got Milk?

In Cows on July 9, 2011 at 10:37 am

“The FDA has allowed the meaning of ‘milk’ to be watered down to the point where many products that use the term have never seen the inside of a barn.” (Jerry Kozak, NMPF)

I must admit to reading this USA Today story with a bit of amusement. It seems that the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), feeling threatened by market trends, has petitioned the FDA to restrict milk (as a product label) to “mammalian lacteal secretions.” They say that the FDA should enforce the standards of identity regarding dairy products (woe to the poor consumer who may become confused).

Soymilk (and rice, almond, etc.), perhaps 2,000-years-old, has made great inroads into Big Dairy’s market share. The USA Today reports that in 1996 soymilk sales were $124 million and a mere 12 years later, $1 billion. This is why the NMPF is calling for the government (second time in 10 years) to stop “letting the bastardization of dairy terms proliferate.” Clearly ironic is the NMPF’s indignation over a truth-in-advertising issue. Contrary to the finely-tuned propaganda, their products are anything but normal or natural. In fact, we are the only species on the planet that continues to drink milk (although, surely not our own) beyond young childhood. Lactose intolerance is recognized as a common condition, but the more accurate description would be lactase persistence, considering that “less than 40% of people in the world retain the ability to digest lactose after childhood.” For most humans (normal), production of the enzyme lactase (which breaks down lactose) significantly declines by age five (i.e., after weaning). Simply put, adults shouldn’t be drinking something that their bodies can’t naturally digest.

A truly truthful Big Dairy (their sample protest letter says they request this “to protect the interest of consumers” and “to promote honesty in the marketplace”) would also tell us that cows produce milk to feed their babies, not ours. To keep it flowing, they are trapped in a continuous cycle of (artificial) insemination-pregnancy-birth and must have their babies torn from them (forever) within 24 hours of delivery. By implying that cow’s milk is part of nature’s bounty (like grapes on a vine) and that the producer needn’t be killed for her product (unlike her beef-cattle brothers), the industry relies on the public burying its collective head in the sand: overstressed (bolstered by hormones and antibiotics, fewer cows are producing more milk) and eventually spent (mastitis, lameness, infertility), the milking machines are converted to hamburger by their fifth birthdays. Many, called downers (some 75% of all downers are dairy cows), are too sick or weak to rise after falling and are either dragged to slaughter or simply left where they dropped.

The NMPF’s Kozak says, “Although some phony dairy foods may have a passing resemblance to their authentic counterparts, they are very different in nutritional value, composition, and performance from standardized dairy products.” But, inconveniently, standard soymilk comes fortified with calcium, has an equal amount of protein, less saturated fat, and no cholesterol.

What makes all of this particularly confusing is that a single company is the nation’s largest dairy and soymilk processor. The giant conglomerate Dean Foods operates under some very recognizable names: Garelick, Meadow Brook, Land O’Lakes, Silk, and Sun Soy. They clearly have a vested interest in the continued success of both dairy and nondairy. In the end, it really doesn’t matter what the product is called. Market demand will be what it will be, and like Dean Foods, dairy producers will need to adjust accordingly. Vegan foods have been steadily evolving for years and have achieved a presence in mainstream markets; even cheese is being replicated with exciting results (Daiya mozzarella). Perhaps the NMPF obsessing over a label indicates that more significant change is on the horizon.

Abuse at Willet Dairy Farm

In Cows, Factory Farming on June 25, 2011 at 10:40 am

This undercover video was shot by a member of Mercy For Animals at Willet Dairy Farm (one of New York’s largest) between December 2008 and February 2009.

The evidence: tails are cut off and horns burned away (one had her face immobilized on a fence) with no painkillers; numerous incidents of neglected infections and puss-filled open wounds (a prolapsed uterus was left untreated for over two weeks); filthy conditions, with the animals standing in feces and urine; downers left unattended for days; workers kicking, hitting, pushing, and using electric prods; and terrified newborns dragged from their distressed mothers (the anguish in their bellowing is palpable). One worker uttered these proud recollections:

…I walked around behind him and started kicking him in the balls…as hard as I fuckin could.

Cracked her right over the fuckin skull [with a wrench]…stupid bitch!

Fuckin kicking her, hitting her…fuckin jumpin off of the top of the goddamn gate and stoppin on her head and shit.

Then just fuckin hold her head and just start fuckin puchin the shit out of her.

Oh, you can tell I have no love loss for these motherfuckers.

A detailed 40-page Criminal Complaint was prepared by MFA and forwarded to the Cayuga County DA. Their response: “While shocking to look at, these practices are not necessarily illegal.” This is what is referred to as normal industry practice. Done to a dog or cat, arrests would have already been made.

Tail docking is common because sometimes the tail just gets in the way. The tail is either tied with a band to kill circulation (until it falls off) or simply chopped off with shears. Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal has proposed a tail-docking ban similar to the California law that took effect January 2010. The AVMA has opposed tail docking since 2004. The American Association of Bovine Practitioners says, “The AABP is not aware of sufficient scientific evidence in the literature to support tail docking in cattle.”

Disbudding (destroying the horn-producing cells of the horn bud) and dehorning (removing the horns after they have formed) are done with caustic materials, hot-irons, guillotine shears, wires, knives, saws, spoons, cups, or tubes. These procedures, which are not currently regulated, are supposedly done for safety (both worker and animal) and quality (less bruising). They are also very painful. Veterinarian Holly Cheever (from the MFA report): “[the animals]…show clear evidence of extreme excruciating pain and fear by their vocalizations (bawling and gurgling), their tail wringing, their dilated eyes, their stamping and jumping to attempt to free themselves from their head ties.”

On the downers, Dr. Cheever says, “…any cow, as a prey and not a predator species, experiences terror due to her immobility, which instinctively causes stress since she knows she is helpless to protect herself…” As for the untreated injuries, ethologist Jonathan Balcombe remarks, “…most of the injuries depicted are chronic and appear to have gone largely or entirely untreated. Chronic pain is almost certain to accompany these symptoms.” Veterinarian Deb Teachout concludes, “This is a bad place to be a dairy cow. There is no doubt that these cows are physically and emotionally suffering as there is total disregard for their safety, comfort, and medical condition.” Balcombe: “My professional opinion is that these animals suffer chronically in the conditions depicted. Episodes of acute pain and stress are exacerbated by prolonged confinement, thwarting of natural behaviors, and for many the pain of long-term injury, infection and/or disability.”

Livestock animals are not covered by the Animal Welfare Act, and arrests and convictions under state laws are virtually nonexistent. Cows (pigs, chickens, turkeys, sheep) are legally regarded as machinery; like all machines, they follow an endless cycle of creation, use, and disposal. In a sobering assessment, Willet’s Lyn Odel once said, “We don’t farm any different than anybody else does up and down this road. This is about the nature of our business, about how we farm. It’s not about Willet. It’s about the dairy industry.”

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