How goat milk and cheese are made.
Goats are made pregnant every year to maintain milk production. The entire male young, called kids, who do not produce milk are immediately euthanised after birth since they are considered useless to the farmers. The female kids are also taken from their mothers when they are born and raised to give milk.
Most of the year, the goats are confined in small goat barns with poor ventilation and little space. The barns have either slatted floors or metal floors with holes, to facilitate cleaning for the farmers. The way the barns operate gives rise to many infections, diseases and other emotional stresses. The indoor area for each goat is often under a square meter per goat. This extremely limited space means that the youngest and weakest goats cannot get away from the older goats in cases of conflict, which causes injuries such as broken ribs and bones.
Norwegian goat cheese marketing photo. (coming)
