“The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves – an Australian focus group study

Despite this, many people still hold strong values about how food is produced. The aim of this study was to attain an in-depth understanding of Australian public attitudes towards sustainability and animal welfare in dairy production, as well as early life killing of surplus dairy calves and cow-calf separation; issues commonly identified as being out of step with public values.

We conducted three focus group sessions, each with 8 Australians that varied in age, gender identity, income, and frequency of consumption of dairy products. Thematic analysis of the semi-structured discussions resulted in two key themes, each with underlying sub-themes: 1) Animal agriculture as an industry, including sustainability, farmers as people, and farming practices; and 2) Personal impacts and reflections as citizens, including ethical considerations, and consumer behaviors.