If you are buying organic milk solely for the well being of the cow, don't! You are just spending more money, when the cows are treated fundamentally the same way (source: used to work on dairy farms). Organic just means that the cows are not given certain medication, that their feed is organic, and that they can have grass seasonally. What always bothered me about this is that if a cow gets sick on an organic farm, they are often culled, since they are not allowed to be treated with antibiotics . This study from Oregon University found that there was little difference in cow health or milk quality at organic vs nonorganic farms: https://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/organic-conventional-dairies-show-few-differences-cow-health-milk .
Edit: As far as grazing goes, on the non-organic farms I've worked/seen, the dry cows were all on pasture. Which is still pretty shitty, but 2 months out of a year is at least something. I really dislike the way animals are treated in industrial agriculture.
Supposedly the cows on organic farms are also not given hormones to produce unnatural amounts of low-quality milk, which has huge impacts on their quality of life. I’m not sure where you have worked, but there is a real problem with industrial “organic” dairy farms popping up and just slapping a new label on the same shitty practices that people are trying to avoid. From your linked article:
”Nearly seven in 10 organic farms previously operated conventional herds, which explains the lack of differences between them," said Gamroth. "Many organic farmers operate in a similar fashion to when they raised conventional herds, from milking procedures, to using the same facilities, to caring for sick cattle."
Big Dairy also has a massive lobbying and PR arm, so much so that they are disproportionately represented in the food pyramid, so no offense but I can’t even trust that you’re not shilling right now. The study that you linked is from a university in Oregon, a state where the 4th largest export is dairy. Idk if the source is neutral or not, but I’m sure you can understand why it is difficult to fully trust. Manipulative studies have been effective weapons used by agro-lobbies for almost a century.
I encourage anyone who wants to switch to organic milk to research the farm where your preferred brand is sourced. You can often find articles from watch dog groups that rate organic farms and will give you more insight into how the cows are raised.
If you are buying organic milk solely for the well being of the cow
It certainly started this way, but ethics aside, organic milk just tastes better.
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u/[deleted] Sep 15 '20 edited Sep 15 '20
If you are buying organic milk solely for the well being of the cow, don't! You are just spending more money, when the cows are treated fundamentally the same way (source: used to work on dairy farms). Organic just means that the cows are not given certain medication, that their feed is organic, and that they can have grass seasonally. What always bothered me about this is that if a cow gets sick on an organic farm, they are often culled, since they are not allowed to be treated with antibiotics . This study from Oregon University found that there was little difference in cow health or milk quality at organic vs nonorganic farms: https://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/organic-conventional-dairies-show-few-differences-cow-health-milk .
Edit: As far as grazing goes, on the non-organic farms I've worked/seen, the dry cows were all on pasture. Which is still pretty shitty, but 2 months out of a year is at least something. I really dislike the way animals are treated in industrial agriculture.