Do dairy cows enter the human food consumption chain? Why do we use certain cows for milk production?
Dairy cattle after their milk production phase are harvested and used for human consumption. Because of their age at harvest, the meat is usually ground into hamburger. As cattle get older, tenderness decreases. Males (not selected for breeding purposes) and females (not selected to produce milk) are also harvested for human consumption. These animals are young enough at harvest that the primal cuts (steaks, roasts, etc) are marketed from these carcasses. Dairy cows through genetic selection have been bred to produce large volumes of milk.
