Modern dairy cows are bred for milk yields four to five times their natural production, creating metabolic demands that compromise health, welfare, and longevity across intensive dairy systems globally.
Dairy cow welfare is compromised by breeding selection that has prioritised milk yield to the point where cows are metabolically stressed simply by producing what their genetics require. Metabolic diseases including ketosis, displaced abomasum, and milk fever occur at high rates in high-yielding herds because the energy demands of milk production exceed what cows can consume. Welfare improvement requires both management changes — access to pasture, comfortable lying areas, good hoof care — and longer-term breeding changes that select for health traits alongside production. Consumer demand for pasture-based dairy and welfare certification provides market leverage for these changes.