Developed from scientific research, veterinary recommendations, and producers’ experience, the Certified Humane® standard for dairy cattle establishes species-specific requirements. By complying, producers earn the right to display the Certified Humane® seal on product labels and in company marketing communications.

Proper nutrition and the environment in which cattle are raised are detailed in specific chapters of the standard, including particular requirements so calves and bulls can feed, exercise, and rest safely without injury.

Follow along to discover practical tips for dairy cattle nutrition and housing.

Nutrition of dairy cattle

Cattle must have access to a diet that is healthy and appropriate for their age and production stage, in sufficient quantity for all animals. Certain feeds and veterinary products are strictly prohibited.

Practical recommendations:

• Feed containing protein derived from mammals or birds is prohibited, except milk and milk by-products;
• Recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST) must not be used to stimulate productivity;
• Cattle must never be fed antibiotics, ionophores, coccidiostats, or other substances to promote performance, feed efficiency, or milk yield;
• Antibiotics for disease treatment may only be administered under veterinary guidance;
• Adult cattle and calves over 30 days old must receive fiber sources that stimulate rumination;
• Dairy cows should be fed primarily quality pasture and forage in sufficient quantity;
• Feeders must be clean, easily accessible, and provide enough space for all animals to eat simultaneously;
• The entire herd must have daily access to clean, fresh drinking water, with contingency supply for emergencies such as drought;
• All animals must maintain a body condition score of at least 2, according to the standard’s classification table

Nutritional requirements for calves

Calf nutrition must meet specific requirements to ensure healthy development:

• Calves must have constant access to clean, fresh water from the first week of life;

• Newborn calves must receive 2–4 liters of colostrum from the mother, another recently calved cow, or frozen colostrum within the first 6 hours of life;
• Calves must not be weaned before 5 weeks of age, and weaning should be gradual by diluting milk with water;
• After 30 days of life, calves must receive daily feed or forage containing digestible fiber.

Suitable environment for dairy cattle

Housing must not cause physical, thermal, or emotional discomfort and must allow natural behaviors. Animals must have full freedom of movement to lie down, stand up, turn around, groom, and stretch. Tethering is strictly prohibited.

Key recommendations:

• Farms must keep records including total floor area, number of pens or stalls, resting space size, maximum stocking density by age and weight, and feeder and drinker availability;
• Floors must be non-slip and free from elements that cause recurring injuries;
• Barn height must allow normal behavior during mating season, and passageways must permit safe movement without hoof damage;
• Animals housed in loose systems must have shelter from wind and access to a dry, well-drained resting area with sufficient space and comfort; shade structures must accommodate all animals simultaneously;
• Loose housing must provide at least 5.6 m² per adult cow so they can lie down at the same time;
• Bedding must be at least 7.5 cm deep; suitable substrate or rubber flooring (minimum 2.54 cm thick) may be used to absorb moisture;
• Ammonia concentration must not exceed 25 ppm in extreme cases;
• Ventilation must maintain relative humidity below 80%, and lighting must allow inspection at any time;
• Calving areas must be clean, dry or well-drained, and have access to water;
• Milking parlors must be kept extremely clean; milking equipment must be frequently calibrated and properly maintained.

Housing requirements for bulls and calves

Specific requirements also apply to bulls and calves:

• Bulls must have individual housing areas of at least 14 m²; large bulls require 1 m² of resting space per 60 kg of body weight and at least 28 m² of exercise area;
• After weaning, calves must be grouped by similar age and size and have access to an outdoor area;
• Calves must have a resting area in solid-floor housing (no slats) with clean, dry bedding and adequate slope for drainage; individual housing is permitted up to 8 weeks of age with appropriate space for age, size, and breed.

In this article, we break down the main myths and facts about animal welfare certification to show that the path toward more ethical and responsible production is more accessible than it seems. If you work with animal production or use animal-based products in your supply chain, this is worth reading.

Is certification really for everyone?

Yes. Contrary to popular belief, animal welfare certification does not depend on the size of the farm or company. What truly matters is the commitment to best practices. Both small and large producers can become certified, as long as they follow the standards and are organized to meet the established criteria.

Is it expensive?

No. The process involves clear and proportional fees based on the size of the operation. Costs include document review, on-site audits and annual renewal. In fact, certification can lead to long-term savings, animals raised with proper care get sick less often, are more productive and add value to the final product.

Is it a complicated process?

Another myth. The standards are objective and science-based. They guide how to ensure that animals have enough space, comfort, proper access to food and clean water, and live free from pain, stress and mistreatment. With proper planning and transparency, any producer can comply.

Why do these myths still exist?

Much of the resistance comes from misinformation. As with any improvement process, questions and hesitation are common. But the market has evolved, and consumers are paying more attention to the origin of what they consume. Being certified is also a way to stand out and strengthen your market position.

Is the Certified Humane® label truly reliable?

Yes. Since 2003, the program has been active in several countries, including Brazil, Canada, Chile, Peru and the United States,certifying meat, dairy, and egg producers through rigorous and regular audits. The seal assures consumers that the product complies with international animal welfare standards.

There are no economic or geographic barriers for those who want to produce ethically. The first step is seeking reliable information. The Certified Humane® seal is within reach for anyone who values respect for farm animals and aims to offer more responsible products.

Want to learn more about how certification works and debunk the most common myths?

👉 Download the free guide “What You Need to Know to Certify Your Industrial Operation with an Animal Welfare Seal” and discover why this practice benefits producers, businesses, and consumers alike.

A study in Bangladesh demonstrated how improving facilities for small-scale farmers, such as creating appropriate resting and movement areas for cows, can raise care standards and productivity.

By adopting Certified Humane® standards for facilities and environmental design, farms create spaces that prevent injuries, accidents, infections, and stress while providing dairy cows with the opportunity to engage in natural behaviors. The benefits extend beyond the cows – reduced costs and increased productivity are just a few advantages.

Farm Fresh® became Asia’s first dairy company to achieve international Certified Humane® certification. With high animal welfare standards, the company sets an example for other farms in the region.

Learn more about dairy cow welfare and how to prepare facilities and the environment in the full article below!

Facility Records and Injury Prevention

Keeping facility records updated and available for inspections and constant monitoring of critical resources benefits animal welfare. Key areas to track include:

• Total area available for the animals.
• Number of cubicles or resting area size.
• Maximum capacity based on age, weight, and space for feeding, watering, and resting.

Preventing injuries in facilities is also essential:

• There should be no physical features that could cause recurrent injuries to the cattle.
• Concrete floors must be well-maintained to prevent hoof issues.

Excessive scars, bruises, and injuries on soles, hooves, knees, udders, tails, and other areas indicate poor environmental conditions.

Corral Maintenance

Animal handling areas consist of pens designed for compassionate containment, suited to the category, environment, and number of animals. For areas where cows spend extended periods standing (feeding areas, milking parlors, and holding areas), rubber flooring is recommended.

Other tips:

• Handling pen floors should be non-slip or covered to reduce slipping risks.
• Floors should not be so abrasive as to damage hooves.
• Concrete floors should have grooves approximately 0.75–1.3 cm deep or be coated with non-slip material.
• Pens should be well-maintained and free from broken parts and sharp edges.

Animal Safety Measures

Several measures related to facility design and maintenance should be adopted, including:

Avoiding toxic substances in facilities:

• Cattle must not come into contact with toxic paints, wood preservatives, or disinfectants.
• Creosote (creoline) should not be used in areas where animals have direct contact with treated materials.

Electrical installations should be:

• Inaccessible to cattle.
• Well-insulated.
• Properly grounded.

Height and passage design:

• Facilities must be tall enough to allow cattle to exhibit normal behaviors.
• Corridors should be wide enough for two animals to pass freely.
• Corridors and passages must prevent dominant animals from cornering submissive or smaller ones.
• Farm pathways should be well-maintained and free of holes or cracks to protect cattle hooves.

Cleaning and Disinfection:

• Internal surfaces of housing and pens should be made of materials that can be cleaned and disinfected or easily replaced when necessary.

Download Standards for Dairy Cows

The largest skimmed milk powder factory in Asia not only impresses with its size but also represents a milestone in sustainable innovation. Built by Amul, India’s largest dairy cooperative, this facility integrates technologies that reduce energy and water consumption, demonstrating that sustainable milk production is a global priority.

Sustainable milk production offers a range of benefits that go far beyond building a good image: it also enhances the production chain and the quality of the final product, among other advantages. This is confirmed by cattle farmers who have adopted responsible milk production certified by the Certified Humane Program.

Want to learn more about the benefits of producing milk sustainably? Discover examples of those already reaping the rewards of animal welfare? And understand how this aligns with consumer concerns about sustainability?

Stay with us and find out!

Production Advantages

Responsible milk production generates advantages in the production chain itself, as proven by scientific studies and countless farmers who have adopted animal welfare standards—the best way to produce milk sustainably. These standards are designed to protect animals, the environment, and human health.

Here are some of the main advantages:

• Animal welfare improves both the quantity and quality of milk produced.
• Stressed, mistreated, or uncomfortable animals produce less milk.
• Healthy and well-managed cattle are less prone to diseases and accidents.
• Proper handling facilitates farm management, improves team working conditions, and minimizes risks of accidents involving animals.

Example 1: Guaraci Agropastoril

Located in Brazil, Guaraci Agropastoril is one of the companies already benefiting from sustainable milk production. Its three pillars are organic production, animal welfare, and low greenhouse gas emissions—values that earned it the Certified Humane animal welfare certification.

“We know that respecting animals, eliminating risk or stress factors, ensures better production with healthier animals. We pursued certification because animal welfare is part of the philosophical essence of our business,” says co-owner Luis Fernando Laranja da Fonseca.

Example 2: Colun

Colun was the first cooperative in Chile to achieve Certified Humane animal welfare certification for dairy cattle. This milestone is seen by its members as a key moment in the company’s development, enhancing care for animals and the quality of its final products.

Consumer Concerns

As today’s consumers demand sustainability, the best way to earn their trust is to prove your operations are sustainable. To do so, a company should provide detailed information about how food is produced, how animals are treated, and how environmental impacts are minimized.

→ Download the eBook “Standards for Dairy Cows” now!

And what is welfare in milk production? It depends, not least, on adequate nutrition for the species and the needs of each animal according to its production phase, and frequent care for the health of the entire herd. You can’t underestimate the importance of effective management, carried out by responsible and well-trained managers who can detect problems early on and resolve them immediately. 

So, follow the text below and find out how to provide adequate nutrition, carry out effective management and care for the health of the herd to ensure the well-being of dairy cattle!

The right nutrition 

In order to have a healthy diet, each bovine animal must receive the right amount of feed for its age and productive phase, taking into account the climate and season. Heifers, for example, have specific dietary requirements that must be strictly adhered to if they are to become productive when they grow up. 

Here are some important tips for providing adequate nutrition:

– Cattle should not be given antibiotics, ionophores, coccidiostats or other substances to promote growth, feed efficiency or milk production;

– Antibiotics should only be administered individually for the treatment of diseases and only with the advice of a veterinarian;

– From the first weeks of life, there should always be plenty of clean, quality water available to the animals; 

– As soon as they are born, calves should receive a minimum amount of colostrum to ensure they are protected against disease; 

– While dairy cows need to be fed quality pasture and forage, calves over 30 days old need a diet rich in fiber to stimulate rumen development;

– To reduce stress, the diet of cattle must be adapted to their needs in both summer and winter;

– It is essential to plan forage so that the animals also have quality food in the dry season or when there is little pasture. 

Management

It is impractical to guarantee the welfare of any farm animal without those in charge being trained to identify stress factors knowing how to deal with any situation promptly and effectively. For this reason, dairy farm management has a responsibility to provide adequate training for all employees. 

Here are some tips for good dairy farm management:

– Create an emergency action plan outlining the procedures to be followed in the event of fire, drought or flooding;

– Keep up-to-date records of animal husbandry, quarantine procedures and medication use, as well as records of diseases affecting the herd and mortality rates;

– Train caretakers to understand stress factors affecting cattle. 

Herd Health 

Successfully promoting cattle herd health requires drawing up an Animal Health Plan (AHP), which should be updated regularly under the guidance of a veterinarian. The AHP should include the practices and care to be taken with, for example, the animals’ hooves, which should be inspected at least once a year.

See other tips on PSA and herd health:

– The herd’s performance must be monitored constantly and attention must be paid to metabolic and infectious diseases and injuries caused by housing or handling;

– Animals suffering from diseases or injuries need to be treated immediately and, if necessary, euthanized;

– Replacement animals brought in from other sources must be quarantined before joining the herd;

– To assess the herd’s laminitis rate, the locomotion score can be used with biannual PSA records;

– Removal of supernumerary teats can be carried out until puberty with the use of pain medication;

– Hoof trimming can be done at up to 3 weeks of age, using heat cauterization and pain medication;

– Removal of horns should only be done by a veterinarian, using sedative or local anesthesia and anti-inflammatory drugs; 

– Tail docking is prohibited;

– Broom trimming is permitted;

– The farm must be prepared to carry out euthanasia when necessary: the procedure must be carried out by a trained employee or a veterinarian and the disposal of the carcass must meet local requirements and regulations.

One of the pillars of animal welfare is the appropriate management of each species, which also applies to the proper management of dairy cows.

According to Compassion in World Farming, in 2022, more than 92 billion animals were raised for food globally, and 280 million dairy cows produced 730 billion liters of milk.

Based on consumption trends observed in Asia, it is evident that consumers are becoming increasingly aware and demanding a higher standard regarding the products they purchase, especially concerning animal welfare and sustainability.

One example is from a recent report by Deloitte which highlighted that Indian consumers are becoming more value-conscious, prioritizing purchases that reflect their concerns about the environment, health, and animal welfare.

This shift in consumer behavior is directly linked to the growing awareness of the conditions in which animals are raised and the impact these practices have on both product quality and the environment.

As a result, companies that adopt proper management practices and ensure animal welfare not only meet an ethical demand but also position themselves more competitively in a market where consumer loyalty is increasingly influenced by these factors.

Furthermore, as reported by the Asia Food Journal, the food and beverage industry in Asia is undergoing a transformation with emerging trends reflecting a greater demand for healthy, safe, and ethically produced food.

Proper management of dairy cows preserves the health of the animals and allows them to exhibit their natural behaviors, keeping them calm and reducing injury and mortality rates.
Care for reproduction, herd health, and management, for example, makes all the difference.

Want to learn more about this topic and understand how to properly manage dairy cows? Keep reading!  

Reproductive care improves productive efficiency

The more positive the management of cows is during artificial insemination and the subsequent period, the more efficient the herd’s productivity becomes. 

Special attention should be given to the thermal environment of the cows’ housing, as excessive heat can increase embryonic losses and make estrus detection more difficult.

The quality of calf rearing also directly impacts the productive and reproductive performance of future cows.

Here are some important observations:

• 24 months is the recommended age for the first calving.
• The ideal average is one calf per year, or one calving every 12 months.
• Proper management requires placing the cow in a shaded paddock or maternity pen with free access to water and quality feed 30 days before calving.
• The dry period should average 60 days to prepare the mammary gland for milk production.

Management and human-animal interaction

In the proper management of dairy cows, animals should be handled calmly, without shouting or sudden movements, using techniques that respect natural behaviors and do not cause stress or injury.

Here are some welfare guidelines related to herd management:

• Animals should not be pulled or lifted by the tail, skin, ears, or limbs.
• Calves should only be moved when carried, led, or transported safely. Pulling or dragging them is prohibited.
• During calving, interference should occur only to assist in birth, and induced labor should not be used routinely.
• The umbilical cord of newborns should be immersed in an antiseptic solution.
• Animals unable to walk should be treated immediately.
• Marking with cuts, ear notching, or facial marking is prohibited, except for sanitary reasons required by a veterinarian.
• Dogs must be trained not to harm or distress cattle and must be controlled at all times. Dogs are prohibited in the milking parlor.

Management

Proper management of dairy cows cannot be implemented if farm management is not familiar with animal welfare standards and the specifics of each species. Therefore, it is essential to provide adequate training to all managers and staff, including:

• Training to identify and address the stress factors that dairy cows may face.
• Knowledge of the emergency action plan for procedures in cases of fire, drought, or flooding.
• Availability of herd records and quarantine and medication procedures for inspection by animal welfare certifiers.

Herd Health

Ensuring the health of dairy cows requires developing an Animal Health Plan (PSA), which should be regularly updated with veterinary guidance, and constantly monitoring the animals’ performance.

Measures include:

• Observing the occurrence of production diseases, infectious diseases, and injuries caused by inadequate housing or management.
• Treating animals suffering from diseases or injuries immediately and seeking veterinary assistance whenever necessary.
• Subjecting animals brought from other origins to a quarantine period.
• Inspecting and caring for hooves at least once a year.
• Evaluating and recording herd laminitis biannually.
• The removal of supernumerary teats should be performed before puberty, with the use of pain relief medication.
• Disbudding can be done up to 3 weeks of age, using cauterization and pain relief medication.
• Horn removal should be performed only by a veterinarian, using a sedative or local anesthesia and an anti-inflammatory.
• Tail docking is prohibited, but trimming the brush is allowed.
• The farm should be prepared to perform euthanasia if necessary, with the procedure carried out by a trained employee or a veterinarian, and the carcass disposal should comply with local regulations and requirements.

Learn more about best practices in animal production management!