EVERY year half a million male dairy calves are born in the UK. They are the wrong sex for milk production and beef farmers consider them unsuitable for beef production. In 2008, 85,000 were killed shortly after birth.
Rearing male calves for British veal is a way of giving them a better life. More than a quarter of the UK population eats veal, but most comes from intensive continental systems that do not meet British animal welfare standards.
High welfare veal is being produced in Britain. The calves are reared in groups on straw and get a better diet. If British veal-eaters switched from imported to British veal, farmers would be able to give more calves a life worth living.
More information on 01483 521 953 or supportersciwf.org.uk.
ANDREW E ALLCOCK, address supplied, Bournemouth
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