How Much Milk Does A Cow Produce A Day, Year & In A Lifetime?

Cows are also known for the milk they produce, which dairy companies use to make conventional cheeses, yogurts, and other dairy products. These companies adorn their product packaging with picturesque scenes of grazing cattle, surrounded by verdant, wide open spaces. However, these images do not reflect reality for the vast majority of cows who produce milk for the United States dairy industry. Many consumers are surprised to learn that the majority of cows used for their milk suffer a grim existence trapped inside factory farms.

Each year, nine million dairy cows in the U.S. endure a continuous cycle of artificial insemination, birth, and separation from their young to produce milk for human consumption. Once their milk production decreases, their lives end in slaughter at a young age. Increasing awareness of this cruel treatment is contributing to the remarkable popularity of oat milk, almond milk, and other dairy alternatives.

How does a cow produce milk?

It's a common misconception that cows inherently produce milk throughout their lives. In reality, like humans, cows must become pregnant to produce milk. After giving birth, mother cows experience hormonal changes and begin making milk intended to nourish their babies. Farmers then separate the mothers from their babies and set up machines to milk the mothers continuously for the next 10 months to collect their milk for human consumption.

Now, let's get down to the science of how mother cows produce milk. Cows are famous for having "four stomachs," more accurately described as a ruminant digestive system, which is made up of four compartments. Each compartment plays a unique role in the digestive process. After consuming plant matter—typically grasses—the first chamber softens the food, which the cow will burp up and chew again several times. Then, in the next chamber, microorganisms feed on the softened plant matter, converting it into energy and proteins. In the final two chambers, nutrients and excess water absorb into the bloodstream, which delivers the nutrients to the mammary glands. Now in the udder, the nutrients bond with sugars from the liver to make milk.

Do cows have to be pregnant to produce milk?

Yes, like all mammals, cows must become pregnant in order to produce milk.

In the dairy industry, most farmers artificially inseminate their cattle as soon as they're old enough to become pregnant—often around 15 months. This painful procedure typically involves a farmer reaching their arm into the cow's rectum to deposit the semen. After about nine months of pregnancy, the cow gives birth to their young. To collect milk for human consumption, farmers typically separate the mother and her babies shortly after birth. This is standard industry practice, despite the heartbreaking reality that many mother cows cry for days after they are forcibly separated from their baby.

Cows raised in the dairy industry spend their lives trapped in this heartbreaking cycle of artificial insemination, separation from their young, and exhaustive mechanized milking. Most cows are then slaughtered once their milk production drops, which typically occurs at less than five years of age. Their bodies are then processed for low-grade meat, such as ground beef.

Why do farmers treat cows with antibiotics?

Factory farms keep cows in crowded warehouses, often with poor ventilation and limited access to veterinary care. These stressful and dirty conditions are conducive to breeding diseases. Instead of creating healthier living conditions, factory farms administer low doses of antibiotics to the cattle to prevent disease. The continual use of antibiotics puts cows and humans who consume their milk at risk for antibiotic resistance. Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria repeatedly exposed to an antibiotic survive and become more abundant as a new, drug-resistant strain. The resistant bacteria can spread to consumers, which can complicate the treatment of illnesses.

What happens to male calves in the dairy industry?

Many female calves in the dairy industry will be used for their milk once they are old enough to give birth. However, male calves have no use to the dairy industry because they cannot give birth and produce milk. Most male calves are either shot shortly after birth or sent off to veal farms. Some veal farms keep alone in small plastic crates, which provide only enough space for a calf to stand up. The babies are kept weak and intentionally malnourished in order to produce tender flesh. Calves are typically sent to slaughter before they reach 20 weeks old.

How much milk does a cow produce?

The dairy industry sees cows in terms of their economic value, not as complex, social beings. As a result, it breeds cows to produce large quantities of milk. Today, cows produce twice as much milk as they did forty years ago.

How much milk do cows produce in their lifetimes?

A lactating cow in the dairy industry typically produces about six to seven gallons of milk per day and more than 2,000 gallons per year. Estimates suggest that a cow produces nearly 11,000 gallons of milk—more than 200,000 cups—during her lifetime. However, the quantity varies depending on how many cycles of birth the cow is subjected to before slaughter and other factors. One Wisconsin cow named Hilda produced 53,000 gallons of milk during her lifetime.

How many years will a cow produce milk?

Dairy cows typically start producing milk after the birth of their first offspring, which occurs at about two to three years of age. They endure 3-4 cycles of birth until they are considered "spent," or no longer financially viable because their milk production has decreased. Then they are typically sent to slaughter by or before the age of five. The natural lifespan of a cow is 15-20 years.

Milk production facts and statistics

• Holsteins are the most common breed of dairy cow, composing over 90% of dairy cattle in the U.S.

• Roughly 270 million cows are currently used for their milk on a global scale

• More than 70% of cows in the U.S. live in factory farms

• Forced milk production in cows has been linked to health problems, including lameness, infertility, and mastitis

• The market for dairy alternatives is growing rapidly, and is expected to reach $50.87 billion by 2028

• 67% of adults in the U.S. have tried dairy-free milk, and about 1 in 3 people drink non-dairy milk on at least a weekly basis

You Can Create a More Compassionate Future for Cows

The dairy industry is rife with suffering. The excruciating separation of mother cows and their babies and the horrific abuse and slaughter of baby calves for veal are just a few examples of standard practices in the dairy industry. And cows aren't the only ones at risk—the massive environmental footprint of dairy and the threat of antibiotic resistance pose threats to human well-being, too.

Today, nutritious milks and cheeses made from oats, almonds, cashews, and other plants provide a widely available alternative to the sad realities of the dairy industry. It's no wonder that the popularity of these great-tasting dairy alternatives is skyrocketing. By making more dairy-free food choices, consumers like you can pave the way to a more just and compassionate food system.