Ethical Dairy: Avoid being vegan, but support humane treatment of animals!

The word "vegan" conjures up images of sad, dry-looking cupcakes that a dreadlocked and neutral-tone wearing woman is offering me while exclaiming, "you wouldn't even know they're vegan!" When in my mind I know for a fact that this pseudo-treat will be sub-par and I feel sorry for this person on a foodie-level, though guilty for knowing that they're sticking to their anti-animal cruelty prerogative better than I am.

I suppose I could give up dairy products, or all animal products as vegans do, and feel righteous and ethical. However, I love to cook and create new foods with dairy products and eggs, and of course with my new cheese obsession, veganism is a long way off. So I've begun to research just which brands of dairy actually have cows out in pasture, have not been buying from factory farms, and can provide me with a product I feel morally confident supporting. Can I have my cake and eat it too? (And hopefully a cake with eggs and butter).

I used Cornicopia Institute's Organic Dairy Report to find information on brands of milk and cheese that you would find in a California supermarket. All ratings are on a scale of 0 to 5, with five being the most ethically produced brands (based on information on ownership structure, milk supply, disclosure, certifier, pasture provided, cull rate, hormone and antibiotic use, and farm management). The list has been edited to brands you would find here on the West Coast. Apparently, conventional AKA non-organic dairy, gets a negative rating, so only organic sources are considered.

5 (Outstanding)

Organic Pastures Dairy Company
Butternut Farms

4 (Excellent)

Green Field Farms

Cows love their pasture.. buy a 4 or 5 rated brand!

Trimona Yogurt
Rumiano Cheese
Organic Valley (CROPP)
White Mountain Foods
Alden's Organic (Oregon Ice Cream)
Amish Country Farms
Julie's (Organic Ice Cream)
Nancy's (Springfield Creamery)
Green and Black's Organic-USA
Cedar Grove Cheese
Organic Creamery (DCI Cheese)
Wallaby Yogurt
365 organic (Whole Foods)
Cowgirl Creamery
Straus Family Creamery
Three Twins Organic
Clover Organic Farms
Stonyfield
Sunnyside Farms
Sierra Nevada Cheese Company

3 (Very Good) - none in California

2 Private-Label (Good, but refuse to participate in the study, info based on "industry sources.")

(TESCO) Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market
Woodstock (UNFI)

1 Private-Label (some or all factory-farm dairy)

Great Value (Wal-Mart)
Kirkland Signature (Costco)
O Organics (Safeway)
Simply Balanced (Target)
Trader Joe's
Wild Harvet (Albertson's)

0 (Ethically Deficient - produce or purchase factory-farm dairy)

Back to Nature (Kraft)
Challenge Dairy Products
Horizon
Humboldt Creamery (Foster Family Dairy)
Applegate Farms (Hormel)
Grassland Butter
Greenbank Farms/Stonefelt Cheese Co.
Natural Prairie
Spring Hill Cheese/Petaluma Creamery
Wholesome Valley (Galaxy Foods)

What I found surprising was that Horizon, a milk I had on my cereal all throughout my childhood and looks like a reputable source, has the worst rating. The fact that Kraft, Wal-mart, Costco, and Target brands were in the bottom tier was not such an epiphany. Safeway and Trader Joe's also support factory farm dairy which I find disappointing because I tend to shop there often and thought that they had higher standards. The top rated brands are not as familiar to me as I assume they are a smaller production and sold at Whole Foods or speciality stores. Wallaby and Straus Family Creamery yogurt, Cowgirl Creamery cheese, and the 365 brand milk I have all seen recently at Whole Foods. Stonyfield and Clover Organic milk might be an even better bet because they have a rating of 4 and are more widely distributed.

So maybe it's not impossible to cut support to factory farming without going vegan if you know the background of your dairy purchases. I already do not eat meat, but I would assume you could research ethical meat producers the same way. And if we were all angels, we would shop solely at local farmers markets for everything from meat to vegetables to cheese. One step at a time!