Dairy Farming in the Alpine Countries

December 31, 2024 Sven Altorfer

Almond milk, coconut milk, soy milk, etc. are currently on everyone's lips and the well-known cow's milk seems to be moving further and further back on the shelves - the trend of milk alternatives is in full swing, while cow's milk has increasingly been branded as harmful to the environment in recent years. Cafés and restaurants that do not offer plant-based alternatives to conventional cow's milk are now considered to be backwards. Likewise, many supporters of plant-based "milk drinks" view conservative cow's milk consumers with skepticism and criticize consumption as harmful to the environment. But how sustainable are plant-based milk alternatives really, and how do they fare in terms of nutritional value?

Proponents of the tried and tested cow's milk and farmers from the Alps argue that cow's milk produced in an animal-friendly manner and with the help of regenerative agriculture is even more sustainable than the currently touted alternatives. They also argue that cow's milk is in some ways a plant-based product, since its original source and biomass is grass. The milk is simply an end product catalyzed by the cow, which ultimately provides an ideal and sustainable source of protein for humans.

In this article, we would like to take a closer look at who exactly is right, how healthy the different types of milk are and which milk has a better ecological balance.

How is cow's milk made?

Cows are vegetarians and eat grass - most of us should know that. What many people don't know, however, is that a cow only produces milk when she is pregnant. So if a cow is carrying a calf, she will produce milk from the second month of her pregnancy. The grass eaten by the cow is then converted into the milk we know in the udder through various chemical processes. In a sense, cow's milk is therefore 100% plant-based and is converted into white milk by the cow as a catalyst. This is particularly helpful for us humans because we cannot use the cellulose in the grass ourselves. The grass, which we cannot use, the underlying biomass, is later converted into highly complex protein structures using a fermentation process.

We would like to explain why cow's milk is so important, valuable and even plays a huge role in human evolution and civilization with a brief detour into history.

We therefore ask ourselves, since when have people actually been consuming cow’s milk?

The Evolution of Milk

We have probably all experienced the ongoing human evolution in connection with cow’s milk in our everyday lives – “I am lactose intolerant” is the key phrase here.

The ability to drink and digest cow's milk is something we have only evolved over the last few millennia. A comparison could be drawn here with the evolution of human posture - first we moved around on all fours, later crouched on our knuckles, and today we walk upright. In human history, we are still in the crouched gait when it comes to cow's milk, as not everyone in the world can digest cow's milk without problems. These people are lactose intolerant. If someone is lactose intolerant, they lack a certain gene to produce lactase. Lactase is an enzyme that breaks down the lactose contained in milk into its components galactose and glucose. This chemical reaction ensures that the components of milk sugar (lactose) can be absorbed by the small intestinal mucosa.

For generations, most of us have been able to digest dairy products, or rather the milk sugar lactose. A mutation in our genes has resulted in most Europeans carrying a version of the so-called LCT gene, which means that the lactase production that we naturally have as babies and young children does not stop in later years, but continues. In Asia, for example, people still struggle with lactose intolerance, as the majority of the population does not have the LCT gene.

Geneticist Mark Thomas and his research team from University College in the United Kingdom have managed to identify the origin of lactose tolerance. It is also interesting that the beginning of the farming way of life is directly linked to the emergence of lactose tolerance. According to Thomas' findings, the first people consumed dairy products around 7450-7900 years ago in what is now Romania and Hungary. At that time, the Linear Pottery culture lived in these latitudes, which was one of the most important populations in Neolithic Europe. This culture is credited with the beginning of our civilization and agriculture, particularly through the revolutionary consumption of dairy products. The first "milk drinkers" spread rapidly from there across the entire European region and began to establish agriculture.

Apart from the enormous socio-cultural and economic benefits that milk consumption has had on human history, the health benefits and high nutritional content of cow's milk have also benefited humans in their development.

If cow's milk is so primal and paved the way for the agriculture that we all benefit from, why has it fallen into such disrepute?

We do not want to ignore the ecological balance of cow's milk and therefore address the most important points of criticism.

sustainability of cow's milk

Cow's milk has admittedly fallen into disrepute in recent years for legitimate reasons: factory farming, mastitis and ethically questionable conditions in the keeping of cows in agriculture have opened the eyes of many of us and made us think again. The ever-increasing demand and the resulting increase in consumption of meat and dairy products has led to inhumane conditions for many cows and cattle. Greedy corporations and profit have cast a shadow over the once natural coexistence of cows and humans. The fact that the conditions of factory farming are not to be supported, that they are criticized and that in the future they should be regulated in a more animal-friendly way, cannot be questioned and is not up for discussion. We too speak out actively and loudly against factory farming.

However, there are countless farmers, especially in the Alpine regions, who have traditionally and for generations relied on regenerative and natural farming, in which the cow does not have to suffer, but is bred and cared for by dairy farmers in sheltered conditions. Respect for nature and animals has been and will continue to be maintained. We would therefore like to listen to these voices.

Dairy farming can be operated in a CO2-neutral manner

If dairy cows are kept in regenerative agriculture, then dairy farming can be CO2-neutral or even CO2-negative. In this form of agriculture, from which we exclusively source the ingredients for all our products, the cow lives a life free of suffering in natural conditions. Milk production is not artificially increased, the cows eat grass from the pasture and are not given any punched feed that produces greenhouse gases during production, but grow and thrive locally. Cows will always emit methane, but this can be neutralized in their ecological footprint through reforestation or the use of solar power and hydroelectric power plants.

The dairy industry in the Alpine countries is a pioneer of this CO2-neutral cow's milk. Through regenerative agriculture, the organic husbandry and feeding of dairy cows, the milk produced becomes a sustainable protein source that is 100% plant-based.

Comparison of milk with milk alternatives

If you compare cow's milk with plant-based alternative drinks in terms of nutrients, cow's milk comes out much better. Cow's milk provides a number of nutrients and minerals in high concentrations and does not require any subsequent additives to achieve the desired nutritional levels, as it already contains these naturally. It is not for nothing that cow's milk is considered a staple food. In terms of the ecological balance, it can be said that cow's milk from factory farming should not be advocated and does not have a good ecological balance - it contributes to greenhouse gases due to its high nitrogen emissions. Cow's milk from regenerative agriculture, on the other hand, can be CO-2 neutral or even CO-2 negative and therefore has an excellent ecological balance.

For comparison in terms of nutrients: Oat milk usually only contains a third of the amount of protein that we find in cow's milk. When it comes to calcium, potassium and protein, cow's milk also has better nutrient contents than, for example, soy milk. Cow's milk also contains around 400 fatty acids, which none of the plant-based alternative drinks can match. Cow's milk also contains the growth hormone IGF-1, which has been proven to make people taller and longer. We also know that proteins from plants are processed less well by our bodies than animal proteins, such as those found in cow's milk. In addition, the nutrient content of plant-based milk is usually artificially increased afterwards through additives so that it can keep up with the nutritional values of cow's milk.

But how do milk alternatives fare in terms of their ecological footprint? Are they really more sustainable than cow's milk?

Soy milk and the deforestation of the rainforests

Around 35 million tons of soy are imported every year, more than half of which comes from Brazil. The gigantic soy fields are displacing the millions of years old rainforest there. The rainforests and savannas are habitats for numerous animals and insects that are being driven out of their habitat. The pesticides used on the fields also pollute the soil and groundwater in the regions. The monocultures planted are mostly genetically manipulated so that they can better fend off pests and are more productive. Soy milk is therefore often not sustainable and does not have a good ecological balance.

Critics of cow's milk often point out that most soy production is used to produce animal feed, such as cows in factory farms. This is true, but it does not apply to dairy cows in regenerative agriculture, as they eat local grass and are fed organically. We agree that feeding cows soy meal is not recommended, as the excreta of a cow fed soy is extremely high in nitrates and pollutes the soil and fields, which in turn pass the nitrate pollution on to the groundwater. Regenerative agriculture puts an end to this vicious cycle.

Almond milk and the death of bees

In Europe and the USA, almond milk is the second most popular alternative to cow's milk. A full 80% of the almonds produced worldwide come from California, where huge monocultures are displacing the local flora and fauna. In addition, the dry climate in California means that extremely large amounts of water are needed for the harvest to be successful. One of the most devastating factors in almond production, however, are the bees. The almond trees in California must be pollinated regularly in order to produce almonds. To ensure this, billions of bees are distributed across Californian plantations every year. The bees are helplessly exposed to constant transport, high stocking densities, enormous stress and the pesticide-contaminated environment. The bees' immune systems are weakened by these conditions, making them vulnerable to viruses and parasites. This chronic weakening of the bees' immune systems is to be viewed critically from an evolutionary perspective and is considered to be a contributing factor to the bee deaths.

Researchers at the University of California also found that the production of almond milk requires about 17 times more water than cow's milk.

Conclusion – Cow's milk from regenerative agriculture in the Alps

Our conclusion is therefore as follows: cow's milk from factory farming is not sustainable and should not be supported, while regenerative dairy farming can be CO2 neutral or even CO2 negative. Cow's milk from regenerative agriculture in the Alps often has a better ecological balance than the imported, plant-based alternatives.

The nutritional values of cow's milk often compare better with plant-based alternatives, making it a staple food for humans. Moderate consumption of cow's milk from regenerative agriculture can therefore be more sustainable and healthier than plant-based alternatives, which often fluctuate in their nutritional values and therefore have additives added afterwards, and often have a poor ecological balance because they require large amounts of water to produce, contribute to the death of bees, or cause the deforestation of rainforests abroad.

BE THE CHANGE® therefore works with its own suppliers from the Swiss dairy industry and maintains personal and long-term relationships with all farmers. Organic and regenerative agriculture are part of our company's mission statement. We work exclusively with selected farmers who respectfully nurture and lovingly care for the cows and calves in their nature and natural needs according to the principle of organic and regenerative agriculture.

We know exactly which dairy products come from which mother cow, because the overall health of the cows is crucial for acceptable and healthy dairy products. The well-being of the animals is directly related to free-range husbandry on healthy pastures, local and natural nutrition, and species-appropriate and loving animal husbandry so that high-quality and rich cow's milk can be produced. Cow's milk from regenerative agriculture in the Alps is sustainable, in harmony with nature, corresponds to animal welfare and offers an excellent source of nutrients and protein for us humans.