Hello all. I am trying to find out if the Swiss cows are treated rBGH to produce more milk. It is a common practice in the US, but I believe I had heard it had been outlawed in most of Europe. If not so, is it possible to find milk from untreated cows?
I don't know much about this. I always buy Bio milk, simply because it has to be the most reliable option in the supermarket. It would however be nice to know exactly what this label implies. Does anybody else have detailed information on this?
Hormone mast and preventive antibiotics treatment are illegal in Switzerland. Meat from countries where these practises are common can be imported but they must be declared. I don't think that the country imports milk, but we import milk produce.
Have a look at this Bio-Suisse website (organic produce). Hope that reassures you - Organic milk (Bio-Milch) is available in practically all supermarkets now.
I would be very surprised if growth hormones were found in Swiss milk. In any case, it would have to be declared. Some US and Argentinian beef I've seen for sale has such a declaration.
Thanks y'all. It's so nice to know that the US government still thinks it is just fine to sell me products that have been banned in the rest of the civilized world.
Which label? Here's a rating from the WWF and a couple other organisations. It is based on the five factors ecology, animal comfort, strictness of controls, workplace quality and food processing.
There are also some huge tables with detailed results available for download at this website, in the national languages. Generally speaking, cows that produce bio milk eat more grass and hay and the concentrate they eat is grown organically. They must be outdoor more days per year and their living conditions in the stable are better (p.e. no holes in the floor). A bio cow produces about half as much milk than a conventional Swiss cow, or a bit more.
Too bad it is not that simple! I buy the milk that is priced twice as high to avoid it. I think my voice is best heard through the market. I've noticed more and more companies are selling/promoting rBGH free milk. I hope the trend continues!
Why not? It seems to work here, that way people who aren't lucky enough to be able to afford expensive meat & milk don't have to consume growth hormones & antibiotics.
See you're confusing a government that is concerned about the safety of their citizens with a government that is concerned with the financial safety of major corporations.
There are plenty of alternatives, almond milk - soya milk - rice milk to name a few. They are absolutely healthy. No rBGH, no IGF-1. Cow milk should only be drunk by calves.
Cow's milk can also be had in both Switzerland and elsewhere without rBGH or IGF-1. It tastes great, has many nutrients, and when not killed with pasteurization and homogenization, contains beneficial microbes. Man has been enjoying it for millennia. It is debatable and very much a matter of opinion whether cow milk "should" only be drunk by calves.
When we lived in the Northeast, I drank the brand Farmland, came from New Jersey. No hormones and didn`t cost anymore than the milk with the hormone. They made a committment and a declaration on the side of the carton to their customers that they would never give their cows the growth hormone.
Their skim milk tasted like drink milk here but it was really delicious.
I have a glass of low fat milk every day for the calcium, doesn`t have all the fat that cheese does and doesn`t drive your cholesterol to the moon.
Most of the adult humans (i.e 70%) cannot drink milk. This is the normal situation. Switzerland is 10%. Sweden, Netherlands and the Basque region have the lowest levels of lactose intolerance in the world.
Those of us adults who can drink milk are mutants.