Veal, Cast In A Kinder Light

[Pajangle]

I never stopped eating veal--I just always buy it from local farmers whom I know and trust. I thought all the kerfuffle over veal was over anyway since all of the regulations and such came down on bad farmers....

[Food Network Fan]

Yes if it's from this country there shouldn't be a problem. That's why I thought it was about the age. I know the UK had some problems like people mention, but EVERYTHING is so regulated here and people are convicted of some serious charges for abusing animals.

[Pluff Mudder]

Veal is still be raised in 30" x 72" "veal crates" in the US. He is taken from his mother at birth or within a few days and placed in a veal crate, where he can only stand or lie for his entire life on hard wood slats. This restriction of movement is to keep the muscles soft. He's fed (twice a day) a diet of fatty liquid (whey and whey protein concentrate with sometimes the addition of skimmed milk powder, casein or buttermilk powder), deficient in iron and fiber, to keep the flesh pale and anemic. The inability to move induces chronic respiratory diseases and the lack of solid food leads to constant diarrhea (another reason for the wood slats in the bottom of the pen... to help with clean up). There is no use of hormones in veal production in the US anymore, but large doses antibiotics are still used to fight the infectious diseases he gets from the excrement covering him and his pen.

Individual stalls are used for each calf. These stalls provide a safe environment where the calves can stand, stretch, groom themselves and lay down in a natural position. These pens are invaluable to the health of the animal. They allow the calves to be individually looked after. The stall's slotted floors allow for efficient removal of waste.

Veal from Farm to Table

It has been announced by the American Veal Association (AVA) to phase out the use of solitary crates (they're going to group crates) by 2017. It may be a larger group crate... but it's still a crate. Individual crates were banned in the UK under the 1987 "Welfare of Calves Regulations" and came into effect in 1990 and thru the European Union in 2007.




If I'm going to eat veal, it will be from a calf that I know that has been with his mother, gets to run and play with other calves, has touched the earth and green grass, nursed from his mother and eaten green grass and has felt the sun. In other words... a calf that has had a happy life.

[Food Network Fan]

The original story seems to contradict much of that. So many stories on the internet it's hard to know.

[ibcheft]

We tried raising our hawgs on slatted floors with a liquid manure system and high moister corn, we had so much trouble with disease and bad feet we moved them back to the woods did away with the floors and used the building for storage this was back in the 60s. I think they will find the same thing with the calves and by the looks of it, the meat will not be worth nothing, because there will not be enough on the calf to pay its upkeep.

[Pluff Mudder]

Originally Posted by Food Network Fan

The original story seems to contradict much of that. So many stories on the internet it's hard to know.

I don't think it contradicts what is said in the original story for that article (promoting the use of humanely raised veal over crate raised) states that only 35% of veal is raised in group housing (ie group crates which is still a crate... just larger) today and both said that single crate veal was to be phased out by 2017. Most of the remaining 65% is raised in single crates except for the very small amount of farmers doing pasture raised (humanely raised) veal, some of which where mentioned in the article. I know nothing was said in the original article about the feeding of veal calves and the antibiotics, but that info can be found in any article about the factory raising of veal... including the USDA and AVA websites. But, that's JMO.