I thought the programme was very good and very balanced and demonstrated that contrary to a lot of uninformed opinion that the cows were extremely well cared for and content.

If we look at the various issues discussed

1 You may be surprised to hear that many farmers have been reported to the RSPCA in the UK by the over zealous tree huggers for leaving their stock out in the rain and cold, asking why they do not wear coats (seriously)!

2 Keeping cows out in fields does not mean they are necessarily HAPPIER than those kept indoors (if they were then does that mean that British cows are unhappy the 2/3 months they are normally kept in?

3 Healthwise the cows are less at risk of lameness and TB.

4 For those people who work with livestock carrying out their duties under one roof is infinitely more pleasureable than working in icy, snowy, wet yards (I know I used to work with horses for years, the advent of the American Barn system was FAB).

Of course there are cons to this as well, as in ANY system or method of doing anything there are pros and cons.

Lack of sunlight will alter the Vitamin D content in the milk and if people do not SEE cows in field etc they are not accustomed to them (remember the vast emptiness post the F & MD?

The main risk IMV is that to natural aquifers and rivers from spillage of slurry pits etc (much like any pollution event) so the appropriate contingency measures need to be made.

I think TBH that we are looking at things from the wrong end.

We live in a land of plenty which = a land of waste.

The value of food is so low that we do not care how much we squander, dispose of and waste.

If food was more expensive, people would value it more, utilise it well and if people took up cooking again those on low incomes would not feel they have to buy convenience foods full of questionable at best items and at best harmful to feed their families.

So WE the consumer are the cause of all this............

Aw thanks xx I am proud Heehee menopause?! Is it good for pregnancy, I hope to go through that phase of my life first, heehee xxxx

Eek oh no, so you can't even trust organic?!
Your farm sounds perfect, lovely pics too.


Oops they do eat, I didn't mean that, sorry They just eat grain! No grass

Yes, that's right, IF we choose to buy the cheap cr*p in the supermarkets. I don't! AND I care about how much I dispose, waste of!

Cows should be in a field in the warmer months, end of, of course they are happier then - it's instinct. Who cares about the staff.

I think you will find the cows care about the staff, and most employees care about their working conditions......................

Won't touch supermarket meat. Mine is all from the local butcher whose meat is from a local farm. I eat a lot of rabbit now. The dog catches it.

I have a go at my mum everyweek for buying caged hen eggs - she's fed up of it and she's just like they're just chickens so in the middle of Iceland I said - "Well I'll shove you in a tiny cage and expect you to poop out nice eggs and have 23 hours of daylight put on you..." I got a lot of attention from others after that and my OH walked away in shame! - But I had my say! I always check where the animals were. My mum was raised on a dairy farm or was it a meat farm - pretty sure it was dairy - they had one cow who gave birth when they moved another farmers bull in...dunno what else though but it couldn't have been bad conditions for one cow though

1) I'm not surprised to hear that, but what does it prove? These are our discerning shoppers, someone who thinks a cow should have a rug on in winter, can't be expected to read a label.

2) I differ, I live next door to a livery, the horses prefer to be turned out, they aren't happy left in, even in this cold snap they have a few hours out each day, in rotation. Bearing in mind this is a livery that specialises in rehabilitation, having had horses through with horrendous injuries that needed to be stabled for several months at a time, with slowly introduced exercised, and slowly increased, and I can certainly say, they look very happy when they are turned out.

3) not necessarily, and what other issues are you introducing, these are grazing animals, kept in a shed, what on earth are we doing to our livestock?? What about muscle condition, skeletal structure, over several generations, domestic livestock has changed phenomenally over the last couple of hundred years, we are going to end up with immobile milk and meat producing animals at this rate, is that right?

4) Again, disagree, the yard manager at the livery isn't liking the snowy weather in particular, but year in, year out, seeing the changing seasons and the animals enjoying themselves naturally is what it's about.

I just finished watching the programme, and it made me feel sick quite frankly. But unfortunately, the vast majority of the buying public are stuck in their ways, in which case we are stuck with the supermarkets, which are very unsuper in my books.

I found it very strange the reaction from that dairy farmer they took over there too? He got very emotional, but for different reasons than we had guessed. He actually was crying happy tears coz he said the cows looked so very happy and contented, and if anybody's going to know their cows, it's a diary man of 40 years plus!

I don't know, the whole world is changiing, I found it quite bizzaire quite honestly, but when the population is escalating to the extent that it is, they've got to feed them all somehow.

The only thing I liked about it was the fact that they had ample food constantly, they were milked constantly (I'm sure it can't be a good thing to let a cow go past it's milking time, which must happen on farms sometimes?), the waste was cleared immediately, so the conditions were good (unlike those battery hens!), but I just don't get it somehow

I was just coming over to post a thread on this

It concerns me deeply - and it's not just about animal welfare (though that is a BIG issue in itself) it's about all the growth hormones and all the other crap given to animals that WE end up eating. Antibiotics, steroids etc And while growth hormones are not currently legal in this country - that only applies to meat farmed here - what about all the meat (and meat products) that come from abroad!?!!

I'm going to rack my brains and try to come up with some ideas to help farmers get a fairer deal. Watch this space

animal welfare takes yet another step backwards

i hope consumers of dairy products refuse to buy and shop as ethically as possible either buying milk alternatives such as alpro or provamel soya milk and products, or if they cant ditch dairy altogether than only buy organic dairy products....only us as consumers can change the lives of factory farmed animals.

Sounds good

you've got my, my family's and all my friends help and support with it, please, please shout up if there's anything we can do to help xx

azz, my mum swears by your thoughts and blames her diet for her cancer, the added hormones etc, she now has a 100% organic diet. As does my Zeke who got cancer this year too.

That's right NOUSHKA05, here's to hoping, I for one will never buy a pint of supermarket milk again. Yesterday I bought my 1st ever pint of soya milk and me and my fiance have just enjoyed it very much in our porridge! Yippeee!