Veal is the meat from young cattle, intrinsically linked to the global dairy industry. Dairy cows must calve to produce milk, making male offspring surplus to the dairy herd’s requirements. These male calves, typically dairy breeds like Holstein, are directed into veal production or raised for beef. This practice efficiently utilizes a byproduct of the dairy cycle, ensuring these young animals enter the food supply chain.
Classifications of Veal
The characteristics of veal meat, including color, flavor, and texture, are determined by the calf’s age and diet, leading to three distinct market classifications. Bob Veal comes from the youngest calves, usually slaughtered up to one month old, often only a few days after birth. These calves yield the smallest carcasses, and the meat is pale due to their minimal development and milk-only diet.
Milk-fed Veal, often called “white veal” or “special-fed veal,” is the most common type in the United States and Canada. These calves are raised for 20 to 24 weeks and fed a carefully formulated liquid milk replacer diet. The diet restricts iron intake, which limits myoglobin production in the muscle tissue. This results in the meat’s characteristic ivory or creamy pink color and delicate flavor.
Rose Veal, also known as grain-fed or red veal, is produced from older calves, typically harvested between eight and 12 months of age. These calves are allowed a more natural diet that includes forage, hay, and solid feed. This diet allows their rumens to develop normally and provides sufficient iron. The resulting meat is a darker, pinker color and has a slightly more pronounced, yet still mild, beef flavor.
Standard Veal Calf Husbandry
Traditional veal systems aim to produce meat with a pale color and tender texture. Tenderness is achieved by harvesting calves at a young age before extensive muscle development occurs. Historically, movement was restricted to prevent muscle toughening. The pale color is maintained through a liquid-only milk replacer diet intentionally low in iron, which suppresses myoglobin concentration.
The milk replacer is a high-energy, fortified liquid, often composed of milk powder, whey, fat, and supplemented with vitamins and minerals. Calves are typically fed this formula twice daily to satisfy their nutritional needs. This liquid diet is low in fiber, which was historically used to inhibit the development of the calf’s rumen, the first stomach compartment.
Historically, housing systems centered on individual stalls or crates designed to limit movement, often preventing the calf from turning around. These individual pens allowed farmers to closely monitor feed intake and health. However, the industry has shifted toward group housing systems. Calves are now often moved into larger pens with other animals after an initial period in individual housing, typically up to eight weeks of age.
Addressing Welfare Concerns in Veal Production
The veal industry historically faced welfare concerns regarding intensive production methods. A primary issue was the use of narrow, tethered stalls or crates that prevented calves from turning around, lying down comfortably, or exercising. This physical confinement prevented natural behaviors and caused stress.
Diet was another major concern, specifically iron restriction used to achieve pale meat, which often led to induced anemia. The lack of roughage or solid feed caused abnormal rumen development and prevented natural chewing behaviors. Social isolation in individual pens was also detrimental to the calves’ social well-being as herd animals.
Significant regulatory and industry changes have been implemented, particularly in Europe. The European Union banned the use of veal crates and mandates that all calves must be reared in groups after eight weeks of age. EU directives also require that calves receive a diet with sufficient iron and a minimum daily ration of fibrous food to ensure proper health and rumen development.
In the United States, the American Veal Association voluntarily phased out the use of tethered crates for milk-fed veal calves by 2017. Nine US states, including California, Ohio, and Massachusetts, have also passed legislation banning veal crates. These changes reflect an industry movement toward housing calves in group pens that allow for standing, stretching, movement, and social interaction.
Veal’s Nutritional Comparison to Beef
Veal offers a nutritional profile different from mature beef, primarily due to the animal’s age and diet. Veal is leaner than many cuts of beef because the young calf has not developed the intramuscular fat, or marbling, found in older cattle. A standard 4-ounce serving of lean veal loin contains approximately 129 to 200 calories and 3.3 to 11 grams of total fat.
The most noticeable nutritional difference is the iron content, which is significantly lower in milk-fed veal than in beef. A serving of milk-fed veal loin contains less than 1 milligram of iron, a direct result of the low-iron diet used to keep the meat pale. Despite the lower iron, veal remains a concentrated source of protein, providing over 24 grams in a 4-ounce serving, and is rich in B vitamins like B12 and niacin.