OPINION:
Mother’s Day, on May 12, celebrates the cherished bond between mother and child. But mother cows, very icons of motherhood, never get to see their own babies.
Newborn calves are torn from their mothers at birth and turned into veal cutlets so that we can drink the milk that was meant for them. The grief-stricken mother cows bellow for days, calling in vain for their babies’ return. Dairy cows spend their lives chained to concrete floors, with no access to the outdoors. They are impregnated artificially to maintain production, and are milked by machines twice a day. When production drops, around 4 years of age, they are ground into hamburger.
Dairy products are laden with cholesterol, saturated fat, hormones, pathogens and antibiotics, leading to obesity, diabetes, heart disease and stroke. Most African- and Asian-Americans lack the enzyme for digesting dairy products.
But help is on the way. Food manufacturers throughout the world are developing excellent nut- and grain-based “dairy” products. Soon U.S. sales alone are expected to exceed $2 billion.
This Mother’s Day, let’s honor motherhood and compassion by replacing the products of cow misery with delicious, healthful, cruelty-free, plant-based milk, cheese and ice cream products offered by our supermarkets.
DEAN HAVALIERATOS
Washington
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