When calves are separated from their mothers after only 24 hours, it results in a clear dilemma in organic milk production. It is not in line with the organic principles, but has been an accepted practice through decades, based on the argument that we need as much milk as possible for human consumption. The dilemma has increasingly awakened the attention of consumers.

At Aarhus University, we currently conduct three projects focusing on calves and cows in dairy herds: the CORE-Organic Cofund project GrazyDaiSy and the Danish OrganicRDD4 project Cow'n'Calf (KALVvedKO in Danish), and a Danish FØL-funded project. All three projects will be introduced on this web-page and blog in more details. 

The aims of our cow-and-calf-projects are to achieve knowledge on careful bonding and separation, housing arrangements, systems perspectives, sustainability and health promoting care, which will make the cow-calf-togetherness possible throughout the milk feeding period in a secure and sustainable manner for both cows, calves and humans – and with the highest possible yield in the form of healthy animals, high product quality of both meat and milk, as well as good economy and trustworthiness in relation to the organic principles. Simultaneously, we will create a foundation for taking informed choices whether such systems would be a solution for milk producers.