You often see bad press about farming in the media, here are a few myths we have come across.
Common Myths about Dairy farming
There are antibiotics in milk - There are very stringent checking procedures to ensure no antibiotics ever reach the food chain. Our cows do sometimes receive antibiotics if they are ever ill, but this is always under the guidance from our Veterinarian and these cows are milked separately. We have strict procedures we follow to ensure the milk from these cows never enters the bulk tank.
Cows are kept in small spaces – Our cows have the freedom to roam our parkland throughout the majority of the year. In the depths of winter they do come into our sheds, when it is just too wet and cold outside and the grass has stopped growing. When inside they have cosy straw beds and lots of room to wander around under cover. They are fed grass all year round, including the winter, we just cut some in the summer and save it for them to eat in the form of grass silage in the winter!
Cows produce so much milk they only live a few years – We are proud of our cows longevity and we believe if our cows are not pushed hard to produce vast quantities of milk, they will still produce enough, but of a much higher quality. They are also much happier, healthier and most live to be 8 years or more the oldest in our herd is 12 years old!
Male calves do not get reared – This is an old-fashioned myth, all our male and female calves are kept and reared on the farm. They then either join the milking herd or are sold as beef store cattle. They all enjoy a full life grazing the fields around Semley.
Cows are injected with hormones – This is illegal in the UK and we have never even contemplated it!