The fate of bull calves in the Alps - From surplus to savior

For a cow to produce milk, she must give birth to a calf. Female calves later become dairy cows themselves, while male calves are surplus to the dairy industry’s requirements. They’re packed into trucks and suffer in transit on their way to fattening facilities.

Cows must calve once a year to produce milk. However, male calves are unwanted, considered waste products of the dairy industry. They’re often sent to fattening farms, mostly outside the EU. A farmer, a scientist and a butcher want to change this. Instead of sending the animals to factory farms where they’re fattened with soy or corn, the bull calves are sent to the pastures and alpine meadows of the Alps.

Along with a small group of farmers, restaurateurs and retailers, dairy farmer Marcel Renz is trying to change the dairy system in southern Germany. He wants to improve animal welfare, shorten transport distances and produce good quality meat that customers are willing to pay a little more for.

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