Veal
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Veal is the meat of young calves, specifically the male offspring of dairy cattle, and is appreciated for its delicate taste, tender texture and nutritious qualities. Dairy cows must give birth annually to continue producing milk naturally, but male dairy calves are of little value to dairy farmers except as meat. Veal is often associated with Italian, French, German cuisines, as well as cuisines of other middle-European countries. North American consumers tend to prepare veal dishes for special occasions only.
Controversy
Veal calves are traditionally raised by restricting their physical movement in order to minimize the growth of tough muscle fibre and to keep their flesh white and tender. The finest veal meat comes from calves still unweaned. Veal farming is universally condemned by animal rights activists and other sympathizers and is used as an example of the alleged cruelty of modern large scale animal farming. Critics of large scale farming often refer to it using the pejorative "factory farming." In the United Kingdom, where animal rights activism has had significant success, traditional veal production has become rare for this reason.
Health risks posed by illegal administration of antibiotics to veal calves are similar and by no means unique to those posed by administration of antibiotics to other human-consumed livestock. Some critics of veal-farming have alleged that farmers compensate for unhealthy living conditions by administering tranquilising medication and high levels of antibiotics. While illegal administration of antibiotics, particularly neomycin, is on the rise, administration of tranquilising medication is not widespread practice nor is it documented in any credible scientific literature. Additionally, recent studies indicate that health threats caused by consumption of antibiotics in veal pose small clinical consequences for humans.
In recent practice, living conditions for veal calves vary greatly, with some modern farms providing clean, well-lit and -ventilated environments, with enough room for calves to stand, stretch, groom themselves and lay down in a natural position. As veal calves are typically at risk of becoming anaemic—resulting in weakness and loss of appetite—modern farmers also often feed calves a carefully controlled, iron-rich diet.
Links and references
- Frequently Asked Questions of the American Veal Farming Industry
- Thinking Outside the Box an article about Dutch veal farming from Beef magazine.
- No Veal an anti veal ad put out by The No Veal Activist Group.