A recent survey from agribusiness giant
Cargill reveals that half of U.S. dairy consumers also use vegan dairy
alternatives.
The survey asked consumers whether and how
they consumed dairy products versus dairy-free alternatives, such as plant-based
milk or ice cream.
While 67 percent of those surveyed said they
regularly consumed animal-based dairy products, up to 50 percent said they
consumed both dairy and plant-based dairy alternatives. What’s more, of those
respondents who avoid or limit dairy, a whopping 20 percent said they avoided
dairy for animal rights or animal cruelty issues.
This is horrifying to the dairy industry. With
half of all dairy consumers also using plant-based alternatives, the dairy
industry is losing a significant portion of its business to vegan products.
America’s largest dairy company, Dean Foods, recently
issued a notice to dozens of dairy suppliers
that it would end their contracts, citing the overproduction of dairy milk due
to lack of consumer demand.
According to a 2013 USDA report, dairy consumption has been on the decline for decades,
with each generation consuming less milk than the one before. In fact, dairy
consumption has fallen a whopping 40 percent since 1970.
While dairy consumption continues to decline,
the plant-based market is thriving. A 2017 report by the Plant Based
Foods Association and The Good Food Institute shows a more than 20
percent increase from the previous year in purchases of dairy alternatives, such as vegan cheese, ice cream, and yogurt, for a total of over $700 million in
sales.
The decline in dairy consumption is great news
for cows, who are treated as mere milk-producing machines at factory farms,
forcibly impregnated and kept in terrible conditions. Calves are torn away from
their mothers shortly after they are born. Male calves are killed for veal.
Females are forced into the dairy herd, trapped in a cycle of abuse for years
until they are considered “spent and sent to slaughter.
Heartbreaking, right? Just watch this
undercover video from a Mercy For Animals investigation.
Join the millions of people who are ditching
dairy and other animal products and switching to a compassionate vegan diet.
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