Media Releases

6th October 2005 – For Immediate Release

New Poster Campaign Exposes Baby-Snatching Epidemic

Up to two million newborns kidnapped every year, with 200,000 shot dead

A national poster campaign launched today by Viva!, Britain’s leading vegan campaigning group, will alert consumers to the seedy kidnapping ring behind every pint of milk. The eye-catching posters, featuring the picture of a newborn calf under the heading ‘MISSING’, will be appearing in cities across Britain to coincide with School Milk Week (10-14 Oct).

Cows produce milk for a reason. They are female mammals who need to feed their young – just like us. No babies, no milk! But dairy cows, who also nurture their babies through a nine month pregnancy, are allowed to suckle their newborns for just a day or two before they are torn away – so that humans can drink the milk meant to nourish the calves. While many of the female calves follow in their mother’s gruelling footsteps as a milk machine, 200,000 male calves are shot in the head every year, the unwanted by-products of milk production.

“Having their infant abducted from under their nose is every parent’s worst nightmare, yet Britain’s two million dairy cows are forced to endure this emotional trauma year after year”, says Viva!’s Senior Campaigner Toni Vernelli. “Cows and their calves form a strong mother/infant bond within the first few hours of birth and both suffer terribly when they are separated by the farmer, often bellowing for several days.”

“In addition to this mental anguish, half of Britain’s dairy cows suffer from painful leg and foot disorders every year and 30 percent endure excruciating udder infections. For people cutting cruelty from their diet, dairy should be the first to go!” 

A copy of Viva!’s eye-catching new poster is enclosed.

For more information on the campaign please contact Toni Vernelli on 0117 944 1000 or 0797 069 0468, or Tony Wardle on 0117 944 1000.