VIVA supports school caterers and calcium deficiency is a real health concern amongst 11 to 18-year-olds as 11% of boys and 22% of girls have a low calcium intake. Vitamin D was added to VIVA recently to help the children absorb more calcium from the milk. Numerous studies demonstrate that soya-based infant formulas are safe and suitable for full-term babies from birth. Almonds are native to the Middle East, India and North Africa and have been a firm staple in local cuisines for centuries. They were first brought to Southern Europe more than 1,000 years ago and, more recently, to California in the 19 th century. Hay fever is one of the most common allergic conditions affecting up to one in five people in the UK. As cow’s milk allergy is linked to other allergic reactions it may be sensible to consider avoiding all dairy to combat hay fever symptoms.

For over 3,000 years soya products formed an essential part of Chinese people’s diet and even when its population reached more than a billion, it was still self-sufficient in soya. It was only when they turned to the mass consumption of meat and dairy that China’s demand for soya exceeded their ability to grow it. Cows like to problem-solve and may get excited when they find solutions 1 Barkham P. 2017. Cows are loving, intelligent and kind – so should we still eat them? The Guardian, 30 October. Available at https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/30/secret-life-of-cows-loving-intelligent-kind-eat-them [Accessed 25 March 2020].A calf would normally feed five to six times a day and the maximum amount of milk in the cow’s udder at any one time to meet this demand would be around two litres. But on most dairy farms, a cow is milked only twice a day, meaning that up to 20 litres of milk can accumulate in her udder. This greatly enlarges it, causes pain, leads to lameness in her hind legs and predisposes her to mastitis (a painful infection of the udder).

Dupont C, Bocquet A, Tomé D et al. 2020. Hydrolyzed rice protein-based formulas, a vegetal alternative in cow’s milk allergy. Nutrients. 12 (9) 2654. absorbed (Testa et al., 2018). Another safe option for a vegan baby with hypothyroidism would be a rice-based infant formula. According to the limited research currently available, hydrolysed rice formulas are a safe and suitable alternative to breastmilk or formula milk (Koo and Lasekan, 2007; Vandenplas, 2017; Dupont et al., 2020). As long as your baby drinks enough of the formula every day, their nutritional needs will be met and they will thrive. AHDB. 2023. Diseases affecting dairy cows. Available at https://ahdb.org.uk/diseases-affecting-dairy-cows[Accessed 23 October 2023].

Spirits and Liqueurs

Maltodextrin is derived from starch – usually from corn or wheat – and is a complex carbohydrate that is easily digested and provides energy. It is much less likely to cause tooth decay than glucose syrup, which used to be used in dairy-free formulas. In the 19 th century, soya was brought to both Europe and the USA and successfully cultivated. The term ‘soy-bean milk’ first appeared in a US publication in 1897, which featured a table comparing the nutritional qualities of soya and cow’s milk!

Cows have been known to play hide-and-seek, although they’re rather too big to be very good at the game 1 Barkham P. 2017. Cows are loving, intelligent and kind – so should we still eat them? The Guardian, 30 October. Available at https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/30/secret-life-of-cows-loving-intelligent-kind-eat-them [Accessed 25 March 2020]. As this farm is no longer in our supply base we will not be taking any further action, although we continue to review our processes to ensure that high welfare standards are in place on all member farms.’ Babies must NEVER be given off-the-shelf cow’s milk or plant milk until they’re at least 12 months old as these do not provide all the nutrients a baby needs, can cause digestive issues and may even damage their immature kidneys.In 2023, it was estimated that there were 7,500 dairy producers in Great Britain, five per cent fewer than in the previous year. 7 AHDB. 2023. Average farm milk production grows despite continued loss of dairy farms. Available at h ttps://ahdb.org.uk/news/average-farm-milk-production-grows-despite-continued-loss-of-dairy-farms [Accessed 5 October 2023]. Wall E, Coffey M, Pritchard T et al. 2021. Incorporating novel data-driven approaches into cattle genetic improvement programmes leads to better animal performance and overall economic gains. Available at https://pure.sruc.ac.uk/en/impacts/incorporating-novel-data-driven-approaches-into-cattle-genetic-im [Accessed 9 October 2023].

AHDB. 2023. Dairy semen code of advertising. Available at https://ahdb.org.uk/dairy-semen-code-of-advertising [Accessed 9 October 2023]. Vegan alcohol includes spirits, beer, wine and cider which are free from animal products. Like the food we eat, vegans choose to avoid non-vegan alcohol and any products with animal-derived ingredients. The most common non-vegan ingredients in alcohol are isinglass, made from the dried swim bladders of fish, gelatine, made from boiled bones, flesh and ligaments, casein, a protein derived from cow’s milk, and albumin from egg whites. The widespread nature of mastitis in British farming is directly due to the ruthless demand for high output, whether within intensive, free range or organic systems. There are numerous records of almond milk being a common ingredient across the Christian and Islamic worlds in the Middle Ages. It was not only used as a beverage or food ingredient but also therapeutically as it’s easier to digest than cow’s milk.COT. 2013. Statement on the potential risks from high levels of soya phytoestrogens in the infant diet. National Animal Disease Information Service. 2010. Mastitis Part 1 – the importance of mastitis. Available at https://www.nadis.org.uk/disease-a-z/cattle/mastitis/mastitis-part-1-the-importance-of-mastitis/ [Accessed 23 October 2023]. Levitt T. 2018. Dairy’s dirty secret: it’s still cheaper to kill male calves than to rear them. The Guardian, 26 March. Available at https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/26/dairy-dirty-secret-its-still-cheaper-to-kill-male-calves-than-to-rear-them [Accessed 27 March 2020]. A review by First Milk as well as a spot audit by Red Tractor have found ‘nothing to suggest a systemic issue at the farm’, spokespeople told Metro.co.uk.