Rose veal production provides a welfare-positive outlet for dairy bull calves that would otherwise be shot at birth, with genuine animal welfare improvements over traditional white veal.
Rose veal represents a significant welfare improvement over the alternative of shooting bull dairy calves at birth. Calves reared under UK rose veal standards receive group housing supporting normal social behaviour, adequate iron preventing anaemia, and access to roughage enabling rumen development. The welfare of rose veal calves is substantially better than that of calves in traditional white veal systems still legal in some countries, and comparable to or better than many conventional beef systems.