The UK dairy industry moved to defend itself this week against heavy criticism from animal welfare campaigners after a report by the European Food Standards Authority (EFSA) highlighted a series of welfare concerns in dairy herds across Europe.

In particular, welfare campaigners seized on the findings that the drive for higher milk yields is adversely affecting the welfare of dairy cows.

The EFSA report concluded the genetic components underlying milk yield are ‘positively correlated with the incidence of lameness, mastitis, reproductive disorders and metabolic disorders’.

It highlights the increase in size of the modern dairy cow as producers look to breed ever more efficient animals, and the problems associated with housing and walking.

Compassion in World Farming said the report demonstrated the Holstein cow was ‘being milked to death.’

However, the UK industry moved to defend itself against the criticism, welcoming the report but stressing that the UK has gone further than many of its competitors on the continent in moving to improve welfare.

Gwyn Jones, chairman of the NFU’s dairy board said the UK had already moved away from tie stalls which are heavily criticised in the report, and said while the industry upheld good standards of welfare there was ‘always room for improvement’.

He said: “The report criticises the breeding of the Holstein to focus on yield but we have moved on in this country quite a long way and there is now a Holstein for a whole host of different systems.

“There are areas where we can improve, but health and welfare is as much about good management and stockmanship so it would be too simplistic to say there are welfare issues inherent in the genetics and the breeding.”

He also hit out at a member of the EFSA panel who was reported in the media last month claiming the Holstein cow was being ‘milked to starvation’.

Mr Jones said it had been ‘extremely unprofessional’ to quote selected, more critical excerpts from the report ahead of publication when in fact it was ‘a balanced and fair study’.

Mr Jones was backed by Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) vice-chairman David Cotton who said the industry could still improve welfare, but first needed to see greater price stability.

He said: “Unless farmers have both the ability and confidence to invest, the environment in which the cow lives cannot continually be redesigned and rebuilt to suit. An average monthly milk price of 20.6ppl plainly won’t allow that.”

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