Corrupt Cultures

Katy Brown peels back the lid on the yoghurt pot.

Yoghurts are brought to market by the usual mix of huge multinationals and smaller local providers. Market leaders are Nestl?, Molkerei Alois Muller (Muller) and Danone. Danone has been criticised recently for angering local farmers in Indonesia by draining wells necessary for daily and agricultural use (7). It has also been criticised by Baby Milk Action for violating the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes (8). Muller's logistics division, Culina Logistics, has been criticised for hiring union busting firm The Burke Group to prevent union organisation (9).

The animal rights group Viva! released a report this year on the dairy industry, which exposes what it describes as "the cruel, dark side to the dairy industry."(1). To keep them constantly producing milk, cows are forcibly impregnated whilst still lactating, meaning they endure both pregnancy and lactation at the same time, usually for seven months of the year. Once a cow gives birth her calf is removed after only a day or two. This separation causes severe stress to both animals and has been described as the most potentially distressing incident in the life of the dairy cow.

Male calves are considered a waste by-product as they can't produce milk. Dairy/beef crosses are sold to beef farms with calves as young as seven days old enduring long journeys to and from livestock markets. Pure dairy males are usually killed within a week or two for baby food, pie ingredients or rennet for cheesemaking (1). Most female calves replace the dairy cows that are killed each year when their productivity drops. They usually spend the first six to eight weeks of life in tiny calf stalls, unable to exercise or socialise with other calves (1). They are fed commercial milk replacer and artificially inseminated at 15 months old to begin the cycle of pregnancy and lactation.

Cows would naturally live for up to 20 years, but the hard existence of the average commercial dairy cow takes it toll. Milk productivity begins to drop at 5-7 years of age at which point the animals are commonly killed for meat (1).

The dairy industry is also highly polluting. Approximately a quarter of all agricultural water pollution incidents recorded by the UK National Rivers Authority are related to dairy farming (2). The UK's 2.2 million dairy cows also produce 230 000 tonnes of the greenhouse gas methane (2).

Soil Association certified products are better for the environment and for the consumer in terms of avoiding much of the antibiotics, hormones and GM feed used in conventional milk production. But do they offer a better deal for the cows?

There are no guidelines for the length of time organic dairy cows may be housed indoors, but completely indoor systems are prohibited. Highly invasive practices such as embryo transfer are forbidden but artificial insemination is allowed. Fertility hormones are prohibited for synchronising calving but not for bringing an infertile cow into heat. Calves must be group housed after seven days old. Castration with a rubber ring is allowed within the first week of life. Disbudding (permanently preventing horn growth by applying a hot iron to the horn-forming tissue) is allowed up to 3 months. Calves can't be taken to market under one month old, but after this, eight hour journeys are allowed. Organic cows are still impregnated each year to provide a continuous supply of milk and separated from their calves within 24-72 hours of birth. The scheme also allows unwanted calves to be killed soon after birth (1).

Dairy products have been linked to osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer, diabetes and a range of allergy related problems (3). Despite the dairy industry's claims that milk is an essential source of calcium, a diet high in dairy products may leach the body of more calcium than it provides (26). Alternative calcium sources include green leafy vegetables such as broccoli and nuts and seeds such as brazil nuts and sesame seeds.

There are now a range of widely available dairy-free alternatives made from soya. However, soya has problems of its own. 56% of the world's soya crop is now genetically modified (4). GM is high on many people's agendas, mainly for the health, environmental and social issues surrounding the technology. All the soya yoghurts in this report are marketed as GMO free.

Historically, logging and cattle ranching have been responsible for most rainforest destruction in the Amazon. Recent increases in demand for soya have accelerated this destruction, particularly in Brazil. However, the majority of the world's soya is actually fed to cattle, including dairy cattle (5,6).

References
1 The Dark Side of Dairy, a Viva! Report by Toni Vernelli BSc Animal Biology and Conservation, 2005
2 Wrecking The Planet, Joni Seager, The State of The Environment Atlas, Penguin Books, 1995
3 Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine www.pcrm.org, viewed on 21/10/05
4 www.food.gov.uk, viewed on 4/11/05
5 www.viva.org.uk, viewed on 4/11/05
6 www.purifymind.com/Hippo, viewed on 4/11/05
7 Corporate Watch newsletter: issue 24, June/July 05
8 Breaking the Rules, International Baby Food Action Network, 2004
9 www.itfglobal.org, viewed on 8/11/05 10 Earth Island Journal: Winter 2002/Vol17
11 Responsible Shopper website: Dean Foods viewed on 02/02/05
12 Ethical Consumer: 85 October/November 2003
13 Who Owns Whom: 2003/2004
14 The Ecologist: May 2003
15 The Ecologist: December 2004
16 Companies that test on animals, PETA, July 2004
17Breaking the Rules: 2004
18 Corporate Watch newsletter: issue 22, Feb/March 2005
19 BUAV Factsheet E3 Cosmetics Companies Guide, November 2004
20 Power Hungry - six reasons to regulate global food corporations: ActionAid report 2005
21 Ecolinks Boycott list - www.ecolinks.net, viewed on 25/02/03
22 www.oilpackers.com, viewed on 8/11/05
23 www.scconline.org, viewed on 11/10/05
24 Yeo Valley Group Corporate Communications: ?Minimising Our Impact on the Environment' 2005 < br>25 www.notmilk.com, viewed on 9/11/05
26 http://milk.elehost.com, viewed on 9/11/05

• Viva! For a free pack on ?How to be dairy free' contact info@viva.org.uk, Viva! 8 York Court, Wilder Street, Bristol, BS2 8QH 0117 944 1000 www.viva.org.uk
• Animal Aid, The Old Chapel, Bradford Street, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1AW 01732 364 546 info@animalaid.org.uk www.animalaid.org.uk
• Soil Association, Bristol House, 40-56 Victoria Street, Bristol, BS1 6BY 0117 314 5000 info@soilassociation.org www.soilassociation.org
• www.notmilk.com exposes the health risks associated with dairy products
• Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine 5100 Wisconsin Ave., N.W., Ste. 400, Washington, DC 20016 pcrm@pcrm.org www.pcrm.org