What is Calf/ Kid at foot?
It’s a practice that shouldn’t be radical but is rare. There are only a handful of farms in the UK practicing. We are the only commercial goat farm in Wales to keep goat kids with their mums and one of two farms keeping calves and mums together in Wales.
So what are we talking about? Simply put, we respect the cycle of motherhood that is integral to dairy by keeping the calves and kids with their mothers until they naturally wean. This means we get less milk as the majority is fed to their young and we milk once a day.
The production of milk relies on reproduction. This can be an uncomfortable realisation when we examine some of the industry standards that appear exploitative. How the cycle of motherhood is treated on the farm has always been important to us. To put it simply we believe that this cycle should be respected, mothers should keep their young and suckle until they naturally wean, this could be anywhere between 5 to 9 months and depends on the individual needs of the pairing. This method is commonly referred to as Calf at Foot or Kid at Foot if you are talking about goats. This means we, the farmers, get less milk but the pair benefit from being kept together. We work in harmony with their cycles. Modern dairy cows and some breeds of dairy goat have been bred to produce far more than a calf needs or it would even be healthy for them to drink. On average a single cow can produce enough to support multiple calves! This share milking creates a relationship with the animals we work with that is built on collaboration and trust. Animal welfare is prioritised above human gains and the farmer is in tune with the animal’s natural instincts and relationships within the herd.
This is in contrast to the majority of dairy farms, conventional or organic, where separation is standard. Removing the calf from the mother means the farmer gets the maximum amount of milk, which is important if you are running an inherited farm with inherited debts in a food system which is forcing you to constantly give more for less. The dairy industry is under constant pressure to provide cheap food. If you are getting paid 18p a liter it isn’t surprising that the idea of sharing milk with calves and goat kids seems like an impossibility.
A major barrier to Calf/kid at foot farming becoming standard in the UK that has been noted by both the NFU and the Soil Association is that it is challenging and time consuming. It requires the farmer to give each pairing individual attention to ensure the little one is getting enough milk and that mum is maintaining good body condition. Helen Browning OBE, Chief Exec of the Soil Association sums up the problems,
“One or two pioneering organic farmers have established systems which allow the cow to rear her calf, as well as providing milk for human consumption, but it is deeply challenging to do this. The cow often refuses to express milk in the parlour, and separating the cow and calf at milking time is logistically difficult, and can be unsafe for farm workers too. Because the calf drinks so much milk, meaning it grows very quickly which is one benefit of this approach, the cost of the milk for humans must be much higher. Despite the public's concerns about welfare, it seems that few are prepared to pay substantially more for milk.”
Building a farm around share principles has been a challenge but our small size and direct relationship with our customers has allowed us to overcome some of the major ones.
Our customers are supporting this process by paying a fair price for dairy that’s farmed in line with their ethics. I truly believe that shifting public consciousness means Calf at foot will continue to grow. When I started my dairy journey there wasn’t even a name for it and I had to go to Norway to work on a farm that was doing this, now it’s increasingly becoming something small farms adopt. Kid at foot is unfortunately not gaining popularity in the same way due to the fact that goats produce significantly less milk than cows.