Dairy & Feminism: the Normalized Exploitation of Female Reproductive Organs
Feminism means something different to everyone. Naturally, not everyone is going to love what I have to say, in fact, most of you probably won't. For most, it is pretty uncomfortable when someone morally challenges an activity you participate in daily. Going to a liberal arts university, most of us probably consider ourselves somewhat educated, aware, or “woke.” I am not here to tell you that you are not a feminist. I ate dairy for 19 years: do I consider that I just became a feminist 18 months ago? Absolutely not. As we are presented with new information, we change. We adapt.
Many do not know much of the dairy industry from which we buy the cow’s milk in our coffee, the cheese at our apero, or the ice cream after our dinner. While some details vary farm to farm, there are fundamental truths about consuming dairy. How a female cow’s milk gets from her body, to our cups, plates and bowls is a process we rarely explore.
To begin, not all cows make milk. The cow has to be female, because she needs utters. To lactate, that cow needs to be a mother. Just like other mammals, cows do not make milk simply because they are cows, they make milk because they are mothers. So, when dairy farmers wish to profit from the cow, they must find a way to impregnate her. In theory, the dairy farmers could put an ovulating cow in a field with a fertile bull and wait for them to eventually mate. However, this is clearly not the most cost effective strategy, nor is it efficient. The widely adopted solution to this is artificial insemination (AI), with nearly 80% of all dairy cow pregnancies being a result of artificial insemination rather than natural mating. Allice, a union of French and Belgian professionals in the business of all national “cattle” artificial inseminations, details their step-by-step process for those learning how to artificially inseminate cows.
Move the tail so it’s on top of your left forearm or tie it up so it will not interfere with the AI process. Raise the tail with one hand (preferably the right) and with the other (which should be gloved and lubricated), gently reach inside the cow to clean out any feces that may interfere with the process of feeling for and inserting the AI gun into the cow’s vagina.
Clean the vulva with a clean paper towel or rag to remove excess manure and debris.
Take the gun out of your jacket or overalls, unwrap it, then insert it at a 30 degree angle into the cow’s vulva. This is so that you avoid going into the urethral opening into the bladder.
With your left hand in the rectum of the cow (which should have been there to begin with), feel with your fingertips through the wall of the rectum and vagina the location of the end of the AI gun until you reach the cervix.
Grasp the cervix with the hand in the rectum of the cow (like you would hold a bar that is below your hand) and hold it steady while you thread the rod into and through the cow’s cervix.
When the rod is all the way through the cervix, check the location with your index finger. The rod should be only 1/2 to 1/4 of an inch into the uterus.
Slowly depress the plunger at the end where your right hand is so that 1/2 is deposited.
Recheck the location of the semen to make sure you are in the cow’s uterus and not in any of her “blind spots” , and deposit the other half of the straw’s contents.
Slowly remove the AI gun, your hand and arm from inside the cow. Check for any blood, infection or semen “feedback” from inside the sheath.
Recheck the straw to see if you used the right bull semen for the cow.
Dispose the straw, glove, and towels in the proper place.
Clean the AI gun if necessary.
Record breeding information on any record keeping system you have on hand.
Release the cow (if necessary, depending on the breeding set-up you have) and restrain the next one to be inseminated.’
Dairy cows go through pregnancy at least three times, but usually up to seven. If this was done to a human, there would be no question on if this unconsenual act was sexual abuse. While inter-species analogies are frequently rejected, the practice of forcibly impregnating a sentient creature is reason enough to question the ethicality of consuming dairy. Non-humans surely deserve at least autonomy over their reproductive organs, to be free of painful and repeated human intervention. Artificial insemination is required for every pregnancy. Further, in order to obtain the bull semen, a bull must be “sexually excited” by a human until they ejaculate. Doesn’t it seem a bit contradictory that perpetrators of beastality can be punished in many states and countries, unless you are paid for it after the fact?
After a cow is forcibly impregnated, she eventually will give birth. Like us, cows are matriarchal beings and feel an intense nurturing instinct for their young. However, most calves are taken from their mothers within 24 hours of their birth, because the more milk the calves drink, the less available for our human consumption. This separation causes great distress on both mother and baby. Female calves will be raised for the same fate as their mothers, while male calves are killed shortly after for veal or raised for beef. When the female cows are not profitable enough for the dairy industry, they too will be killed for their meat - the intended destiny of all dairy cows is the meat industry.
What are some practical demands of feminists today? Some would say reproductive freedom, most would say at least bodily autonomy. The right to have sex when we want to, and to not have sex if we don’t want to. The right to be a mother, and to care for our children if we choose to have them. We are different from cows in many ways, but we share essential characteristics of all animals, human and non-human alike. We are all sentient, conscious beings who can feel happiness, pain, and joy, and we all strive to live a life free of suffering. So, if female beings, regardless of species, can feel pain, then ought we make a small and trivial lifestyle change in order to relieve it?
Or, are there excuses? The American and British dietetic associations, the largest dietician organizations in the world, say that a vegan plant based diet can be healthy in all stages of life, including pregnancy, breastfeeding, and infancy. In fact, a plant based diet is considered a very healthy option, with many pro athletes making the switch. Fiscally, some of the cheapest and most accessible foods are plant based: rice, beans, lentils, bread, pastas, seasonal and frozen vegetables. Fancy meat and cheese substitutes are absolutely inessential goods (although the right brands can be very delicious). As a very culturally diverse university, I am sure dairy may play a large role in your traditional practices. But is culture sufficient reason to continue an immoral action? Think of some other culturally significant but unethical actions throughout history. Would we unwaveringly defend them, or seek out alternatives (in this case, oat milk or almond cheese or oil based butter)? Some would say convenience is an excuse: afterall, there are not too many vegan options at your local Parisian cafe. But, if we acknowledge that this industry is causing immense pain while simultaneously exploiting the female reproductive organs of another, we will soon realize our excuse must be so grand in order to justify our support.
So, is it moral to keep eating dairy? Should we limit our feminist values to a certain species? Or would that be like applying our feminist values to some groups, and not others? It is not difficult to think about groups left out of feminist thinking in the past. How will we shape our future to really make our feminism as intersectional as possible? I hope you’re willing to consider these questions going forward.
