Jainism View on Dairy Products...

Q4. Dairy products are not a Vegetarian product (it is an animal product) why do Jains consume them?  Should they consume? Why is eating of Dairy product not prohibited in the Jain scriptures?

First, let’s talk about the question why dairy products are not prohibited in Jainism:

Jainism is an introspective religion and there are no “thou shalt” commandments in Jainism. Jainism provides a set of values/principles and guidelines on how we can apply them in our day-to-day life. It is up to each one of us to understand and internalize these values/principles and apply them mindfully in various aspects of our lives like how to consume and preserve natural resources, how to follow right ethics, what we should eat/not eat, wear/not wear, integrity with work and finance etc.

We shouldn’t accept anything blindly, but instead be conscious, logical and do the right thing using our wisdom. We have to make sure that there our conduct is consistent with our Jain principles and values.

Next, we will provide our perspectives on the history of cow’s milk usage, cow’s natural milk production cycle, modern day dairy industry, Ahimsa principle as it applies here and Mahavira preaching of Jain principles and his life stories. Then it is up to individuals to make their choices using their own awareness of the situation and wisdom.

Historic perspective on cow’s milk usage:

In olden days, India was primarily an agricultural country and farming industry was owned by individual independent family farmers. Bull was absolutely needed for farming and transportation. Without the availability of bull, human population in India could have extreme difficulties. Hence every farm family use to raise a few cows for the availability of bull. Milk was fed to calves.

Later, as the population of India increased, and India’s agricultural industry was unable to produce enough grains, vegetables, and fruits. So, farmers and others started using very small percentage of milk as food. This milk usage was for their survival and not selling. They treated the cow as their mother and took care of them as a part of the family member. Hence cruelty aspect was very minimum.

Let's understand how natural Cow milk production occurs:

The typical lifespan for a cow is 15-20 years. Just like humans, cows can produce milk only after the calf is born. And the cow naturally produces milk only until the calf is weaned off, which is approximately up to 15 to 18 months. Just like human mothers, cows naturally only produce the quantity of milk that is required by its calf. That is the law of nature for all mothers feeding their babies under natural environment.

How does the modern-day dairy industry work?

Cow’s lifecycle in commercial dairy industry:  

As soon as the cow is around 15 months, she is impregnated. The calf is born after ~9 months. And ~3 months post-delivery, the cow is impregnated again. Cow is made to deliver a calf every year to get continuous supply of milk. The newly born male calf is not allowed to consume its mother milk and mother cow’s all milk is used commercially. However, after 3 deliveries the milk supply goes down.

Statistics says that there is about 30% reduction in the milk production (after 3 deliveries) by age of 5 years. And when that happens, the dairy industry sends the cow to slaughterhouse, since it is not cost effective to keep that cow. And then the same lifecycle starts for the new cow. Cows don’t get any kind of natural or humane life in the process.

Use of hormones and mass milk production:

In the dairy industry, baby cows are given heavy doses of hormones to bring them to reproductive maturity faster than the natural cycle. Young cows are also given heavy hormones and artificially impregnated every year to keep them viable for producing milk. Immediately after a male calf is born, it is taken away from the mother cow.  The female calf is kept with mother for few weeks and then taken away. This causes enormous stress on the mother cow, so it often will not produce any milk for 1-2 days. Then she starts producing milk. In addition, the dairy industry usually uses machines for mass production and those machines are set to timers. 

Use of antibiotics:

The dairy and meat industry are exercising mass production and are not properly caring for the cows leaving them at risk of sickness and infection. For mass protection, the cows are treated with high doses of antibiotics. These severe antibiotics are sometimes used as preventive measures, regardless of true need. As a result, these antibiotics are also deposited within the cow’s milk supply.  Just like in humans, these heavy doses of antibiotics work the same way, by killing bad and good bacteria, which adversely affects their gut and their diet.

What happens to cows that are not producing enough milk or to the male calves?

Mass death of Cows:

Hundreds of years ago, bulls were used for farming and transportation but that is not the case now. The production of dairy products also necessitates the death of countless male calves that are of no use to the dairy farmer, as well as the premature death of cows slaughtered when their milk production decreases. Both male and female calves after kept up to a certain age for the sole purpose of reproduction and milk production.  If they are not needed or cannot be used by the meat/dairy industry, they are slaughtered for “veal” or “beef”.  And finally, older cows and bulls are sent to slaughterhouses.

Why dairy industry is also bad for the environment?

From recycling our household rubbish to cycling to work, we're all aware of ways to live a greener life. One of the most effective things an individual can do to lower their carbon footprint is to avoid all animal products.  Here is why:

The production of dairy and other animal products places a heavy burden on the environment - from crops and water required to feed the animals, to the transport and other processes involved from farm to fork.

The vast amount of grain feed required for meat and dairy production is a significant contributor to deforestation, habitat loss and species extinction. A third of the surface of North America is devoted to grazing. Half of American croplands grow livestock feed for meat and dairy products. 220 million acres of land in the USA have been deforested for livestock production. In Brazil alone, the equivalent of 5.6 million acres of land is used to grow soya beans for animals in Europe. This land contributes to developing world malnutrition by driving impoverished populations to grow cash crops for animal feed, rather than food for themselves.

World's 1.3 billion cows annually produce 100 million tons of methane a powerful greenhouse gas which traps 25 times as much solar heat as CO2. Livestock production accounts for more than half of all the water consumed in USA. And the waste released in the Environment by American Meat and Dairy Industry is 230,000 pounds per second, polluting our land, air and water systems (source: USDA  2001).

On the other hand, considerably lower quantities of crops and water are required to sustain a plant-based diet, making the switch to plant-based diet one of the easiest, most enjoyable and most effective ways to reduce our impact on the environment.

Now let’s look at this from Jainism values / principles perspective:

Ahimsa perspective:

Being vegetarian is just not enough from Ahimsa mindset, since consumption of dairy and other animal byproducts are considered equally high order of sin (Himsa) as consuming direct animal products (E.g. meat and other non-vegetarian food). Great deal of suffering is caused to animals in the dairy industry. While, Ahimsa teaches us that every living being (Animals included) has the right to life and freedom. Cows love their children just like us. They deserve to be safe and free from harm just like us. They have a capacity to experience grief or joy just like us. So why make them suffer?

Now the agricultural production in the world is such a level that it can feed the human population several times over.  There is no shortage of vegetarian food in the world. Milk and other dairy products are not needed for our healthy survival.

Mahavira’s Preaching Perspective

In addition to Ahimsa principle, Mahavir Swami also preached Samvar and Nirjara. In Nirjara, he explained six bahiya tapa, which includes that a Jain should practice “Ras Tyag”. They should not consume juicy food like milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, oil etc., since it affects human mind and makes it lazy and sleepy which is a hindrance to meditation or one’s spiritual progress

Mahavira’s Life Story Perspective

Jain Agam literature (scripture) consist of 65% stories and remaining 35% include Karnanu-yoga (geography, Karma philosophy, gunasthanak etc.), conduct or Achar (six Avashyak, Pratikraman, Samayik, Vows and Repentance), and Philosophy or Dravyanu-yog which include Jain philosophy of pure souls and impure souls.

The main purpose of the Jain stories is to explain Jain principles and conducts. And the significant portion of stories are created (mythology) by the author using the name of the historical personalities. But one should not derive the Jain principles or Jain conducts out of the story.

One such story is that Mahavir ate kheer (milk-based food item) in his first Parna (fast breaking Tapa). Hence many Jains do ask the question that what’s wrong with drinking milk if Mahavira ate kheer?

There is no Jain principle or Jain conduct described by Lord Mahavir that indicates to drink milk and consume dairy products.  On the contrary his teaching of Nirjara bahiya tapa (ras tyag) and ahimsa says to refrain from consumption of milk and dairy products, as explained above.

Bottom Line

There is significant violence and cruelty to five sense animals in the commercial dairy industry and cow’s milk is meant for its calf. Hurting or killing five sense animals are considered highest sin in Jain literature. So, based on that Jains should refrain from dairy products or any products that involves animal cruelty. However, we do understand that any kind of change is difficult especially when it has become a part of life. Even if we can’t make the transition, at a minimum, we should not blindly justify our actions and use our own wisdom to apply the Jain values in the current times.

Therefore, when it comes to dairy products or any products that involves animal cruelty, we need to do the due diligence of gaining as much information as we can. Plus, nowadays given technology/internet, we can do the required research very efficiently to ensure that we have the knowledge and awareness. It is up to each one of us to ensure that our conduct is in-sync with our Jain values and principles.