Most veal comes from male calves born on dairy farms. They can’t produce milk, so they’re raised for meat instead, typically for only a few months on a mostly liquid, milk-based diet. The pale color many buyers expect is tied to how that diet is designed, and this, more than the old image of crates, shapes much of a modern veal calf’s welfare.
Where Veal Calves Come From
A dairy cow has to give birth roughly once a year to keep producing milk. That means dairies produce many calves they don’t need as replacements, especially males. Some dairies now breed cows with beef bulls instead, which can raise profits by about €79 per cow per year in one German analysis.1PubMed Central. Perspectives on the Management of Surplus Dairy Calves in the United States and Canada Crossbred calves fetch better prices for their meat quality than purebred dairy calves.2PubMed Central. Perspectives on the Management of Surplus Dairy Calves in the United States and Canada
A male dairy calf can’t give milk, and dairy breeds are bred for milk rather than for the muscle beef breeds carry, so beef farms often find them unattractive to raise. Veal gives these calves a commercial purpose they would otherwise lack, which is why veal and dairy are tied together economically.
The journey starts early. Calves are usually separated from their mothers within days of birth, and they may pass through markets or collection points before reaching the veal farm. Arrival is a stressful mix of new pens, new calves and new germs.
How a calf starts life shapes its health there. Newborns get early immune protection from the first milk, called colostrum. It is thick and rich in antibodies, and a calf has to drink it soon after birth because its gut absorbs those antibodies best in the first hours. Calves that don’t absorb enough are about twice as likely to die and almost twice as likely to get sick.3PubMed Central. Failure of Passive Immune Transfer in Calves: A Meta-Analysis on the Consequences and Assessment of the Economic Impact Calves arriving at veal farms stressed, underweight and lacking that protection were nearly 4 times as likely to develop respiratory disease.4PubMed. Arrival cortisol measurement in veal calves and its association with body weight, protein fractions, animal health and performance
What Veal Calves Eat and Why Iron Is Limited
Veal calves are fed milk replacer, a powdered milk formula mixed with water, often for their whole lives. They keep drinking milk far longer than calves raised for beef or dairy. Milk replacer is usually made from dairy by-products such as whey and skim milk powder, with added fats, vitamins and minerals. Calves drink it from a bucket or automatic feeder in measured meals, and the amount goes up as they grow.
Iron is a building block of hemoglobin in blood and myoglobin in muscle, and both are red pigments. The amount of iron in milk replacer affects how much iron and red pigment ends up in the muscle at slaughter.5PubMed. Relationship between blood hemoglobin, plasma and tissue iron, muscle heme pigment, and carcass color of veal Muscle holding less myoglobin looks paler, so calves fed less iron produce lighter-colored meat.6PubMed. Iron status, erythropoiesis, meat colour, health status and growth performance of veal calves held on and fed straw
The catch is the calf’s health. Below about 50 mg of iron per kilogram of milk replacer, calves develop anemia, worse the less iron they get.7PubMed. Growth performance, haematological traits, meat variables, and effects of treadmill and transport stress in veal calves supplied different amounts of iron At 10 mg per kilogram, anemia was marked and calves grew more slowly.8PubMed. Growth performance, haematological traits, meat variables, and effects of treadmill and transport stress in veal calves supplied different amounts of iron Anemic calves have less oxygen in their blood, faster heart and breathing rates, and tire more during exercise.9PubMed. Physical performance of veal calves during chronic iron deficiency anaemia and after acute iron overload European food-safety scientists rank iron-deficiency anemia as a major welfare hazard caused directly by restricting iron.10PubMed Central. Scientific Opinion on the welfare of cattle kept for beef production and the welfare in intensive calf farming systems
A mildly anemic calf may look normal to a casual observer, so the problem can go unnoticed without blood tests. Severe anemia shows up as pale gums and inner eyelids, weakness and slower growth.
Pale meat commands a price premium in traditional markets, but the iron level that best protects the calf produces slightly darker meat. Farmers typically monitor blood to keep anemia from becoming severe.
Solid Feed, Chewing, and Stomach Problems
Nibbling is a normal part of how calves learn to eat.11Applied Animal Behaviour Science. Nonnutritive oral activities and stress responses of veal calves in relation to feeding and housing conditions Calves are born with an urge to forage and chew that doesn’t switch off just because they’re fed liquid. A calf may finish its milk in a couple of minutes, leaving hours of unused feeding drive, so calves fed only liquid spend a lot of time nibbling their stalls instead.12Applied Animal Behaviour Science. Nonnutritive oral activities and stress responses of veal calves in relation to feeding and housing conditions They may also roll their tongues or suck at pen mates, signs of frustrated feeding behavior.13PubMed. Prevalence and potential influencing factors of non-nutritive oral behaviors of veal calves on commercial farms
Giving roughage, meaning fibrous feed like hay or straw, reduced tongue-playing and increased normal chewing.14PubMed. Effects of roughage source, amount, and particle size on behavior and gastrointestinal health of veal calves Small amounts of solid feed can also be added without commercial losses.15Applied Animal Behaviour Science. Nonnutritive oral activities and stress responses of veal calves in relation to feeding and housing conditions
But solid feed has a stomach cost. Calves have four stomach compartments, and the rumen, the first, develops when they eat solids. A milk-only diet leaves it small and undeveloped. Damage to the calf’s true stomach is common, often caused by large, infrequent meals.16PubMed. Invited review: Abomasal damage in veal calves Smaller, more frequent meals may reduce it. Yet solid feed, especially straw, increased stomach ulcers and erosions.17PubMed. The provision of solid feeds to veal calves: II. Behavior, physiology, and abomasal damage Calves whose rumen developed early had fewer large stomach scars.18PubMed. Effects of early rumen development and solid feed composition on growth performance and abomasal health in veal calves
Straw is coarse and low in nutrients, so it can irritate the stomach lining. It prevented hairballs from licking but slowed rumen growth. Hay, grain pellets and other feeds each balance chewing satisfaction against digestive effect differently. No fiber source yet fully meets calves’ chewing needs without harming digestion.19PubMed. The provision of solid feeds to veal calves: II. Behavior, physiology, and abomasal damage
Solid feed also changes the farm’s footprint. More solid feed barely changed greenhouse gas emissions, because extra methane from digestion was offset by lower feed and energy emissions. It does need more farmland to grow the ingredients.
Crates, Pens, and Group Housing
In the crate system a calf lived alone in a narrow stall, often unable to turn around. Crates were used to limit movement and contact between calves, aiming at better health and meat quality.20USDA Economic Research Service. Farm Animal Welfare Policies Cover Breeding Sows, Veal Calves, or Laying Hens in 14 U.S. States Public pressure and welfare science pushed the industry toward groups, largely before many laws required it.
US producers have mostly moved to small-group housing as the industry standard.21USDA Economic Research Service. Farm Animal Welfare Policies Cover Breeding Sows, Veal Calves, or Laying Hens in 14 U.S. States Nine US states ban veal crates, covering about 13 percent of US veal operations.22USDA Economic Research Service. Farm Animal Welfare Policies Cover Breeding Sows, Veal Calves, or Laying Hens in 14 U.S. States Because the industry already moved away from crates, these bans have had minimal effect.23USDA Economic Research Service. Farm Animal Welfare Policies Cover Breeding Sows, Veal Calves, or Laying Hens in 14 U.S. States
A modern group pen is usually a ventilated barn with slatted floors, where several calves share a pen and feeding area. Young calves may spend their first 5 to 8 weeks in individual boxes before joining groups, a compromise for disease control.
Group design still affects behavior. Giving more than the 1.8 square meters per calf legal minimum reduced abnormal oral behavior.24PubMed. Prevalence and potential influencing factors of non-nutritive oral behaviors of veal calves on commercial farms More room lets calves lie down and get up comfortably and move away from pen mates that bother them. Groups of more than 10 calves per pen reduced tongue rolling,25PubMed. Prevalence and potential influencing factors of non-nutritive oral behaviors of veal calves on commercial farms perhaps because attention spreads out, though group size is one factor among several. Tongue rolling was more common when calves skipped a short early period in individual boxes.26PubMed. Prevalence and potential influencing factors of non-nutritive oral behaviors of veal calves on commercial farms European scientists also list poor floors and too little space as major hazards.27PubMed Central. Scientific Opinion on the welfare of cattle kept for beef production and the welfare in intensive calf farming systems
Common Illnesses and Stress
Respiratory disease was the leading cause of illness and death in white veal calves.28PubMed Central. Longitudinal study on morbidity and mortality in white veal calves in Belgium Signs include coughing, fast or labored breathing, nasal discharge, fever, and a calf that stops eating or stays lying down. Several germs, viruses and bacteria together, usually work in concert, and stress and poor air quality let them take hold. Some calves develop chronic pneumonia that doesn’t respond to treatment, often with joint and ear infections.29PubMed Central. Longitudinal study on morbidity and mortality in white veal calves in Belgium Antibiotics can’t reverse the lasting lung damage this leaves, which is why these calves often fail to recover. Risk factors change across the fattening period, so solutions differ by stage.30PubMed. Prevalence of respiratory disorders in veal calves and potential risk factors
Arrival is the riskiest stretch. Calves have been moved, gone without proper feeding, and mixed with unfamiliar animals within a short time. Calves from many farms bring many different germs into one barn.
Long-lasting high stress hormones can weaken a calf’s immune system.31PubMed Central. Evaluating Potential Biomarkers of Health and Performance in Veal Calves Calves with higher stress hormones at arrival were more likely to develop lasting lung damage.32PubMed. Arrival cortisol measurement in veal calves and its association with body weight, protein fractions, animal health and performance
Calves may go many hours without feed or water, and hunger and dehydration lower resistance. Electrolytes supply fluids and salts, and calves fed electrolytes rather than milk before transport needed fewer antibiotic treatments, 28 versus 38 percent.33PubMed Central. Transport of Young Veal Calves: Effects of Pre-transport Diet, Transport Duration and Type of Vehicle on Health, Behavior, Use of Medicines, and Slaughter Characteristics Climate-controlled trucks, which ease the strain of heat and cold, reduced diarrhea and navel inflammation.34PubMed Central. Transport of Young Veal Calves: Effects of Pre-transport Diet, Transport Duration and Type of Vehicle on Health, Behavior, Use of Medicines, and Slaughter Characteristics
Farms try to cut stress by buying calves with good immune starts from fewer sources, handling them gently, shortening journeys, and checking calves on arrival to catch high-risk ones early.
Antibiotic Use and Resistance
About three-quarters of antibiotics on veal farms are given orally, often through feed.35PubMed. Risk factors for antimicrobial use in veal calves and the association with mortality Dosing through milk replacer or feed lets a farm treat a whole group at once rather than injecting each calf. That is convenient, but healthy animals get the drug too, exposing more bacteria to it than treating only the sick would. Use stayed fairly stable over several years, while some long-acting types increased.36PubMed. Risk factors for antimicrobial use in veal calves and the association with mortality
Resistance means bacteria have changed in ways that let them survive a drug that would normally kill them. Each time an antibiotic is used, resistant bacteria survive while susceptible ones die, so resistant types become more common. In calves’ gut bacteria, resistance was mainly tied to how much antibiotic was used.37PubMed Central. Antimicrobial resistance in commensal Escherichia coli in veal calves is associated with antimicrobial drug use About half of gut bacteria sampled in veal barns resisted three or more antibiotic classes.38PubMed Central. Characterisation of Antimicrobial Resistance in Special‐Fed Veal Production Environments Classes work in different ways, so bacteria resistant to several leave fewer treatment options, narrowing what a vet can use when an animal is seriously ill.
Farm management matters too. Farmers wearing the same work clothes for days was linked to more resistance.39PubMed Central. Antimicrobial resistance in commensal Escherichia coli in veal calves is associated with antimicrobial drug use Bacteria can travel on clothing and boots from one barn area or group of calves to another.
The issue reaches beyond the farm. Resistant bacteria can spread through trucks and slaughterhouses, and resistance makes infections harder to treat in animals and people.
White Veal Versus Rosé Veal
White veal comes from calves fed mainly milk replacer with limited iron. Rosé veal calves eat more solid feed, are kept longer and grow heavier, so their meat is pink. Rosé systems still vary from farm to farm, so the name alone doesn’t describe every detail of housing or feeding.
The industry has shifted toward grain-fed, heavier calves and group housing, partly over welfare concerns.40Wiley Online Library / Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. Factors affecting the meat quality of veal Yet only a third of UK adults knew the difference.41PubMed. Public opinion and perception of rosé veal in the UK Once told, 61 percent said they’d eat rosé veal, up from 23 percent.42PubMed. Public opinion and perception of rosé veal in the UK
At the store, look for labels naming group-raised, rosé or pasture-raised veal. Pinker meat usually signals more iron and solid feed, and darker color doesn’t mean lower quality. Butchers can tell you about farm sourcing.