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There are 70 different species of cattle in the U.S currently, many of which originated from Europe when colonists brought them over. However, there is only one species today in the diary production industry for consumption: the Holstein. According to holsteinusa.com, Holstein cows are selected for their “unexcelled production, greater income over feed costs, unequaled genetic merit, and adaptability to a wide range of environmental conditions.”

Genetically speaking, this is a large success for the Holstein cattle because they now have the greatest number of gene copies in America. Their genetic fitness was selected for by humans.

automated milking systems in America

Though the number of dairy cows in the U.S. sees a decline over the last 160 years, the total production of milk has increased exponentially. This means that the average amount of milk produced per cow has increased even more drastically than the milk production itself.

This can be largely attributed to an increase in the production efficiency within these dairy farms. Today, “while most American farms still have fewer than 100 cows, 86 percent of milk is produced on the 26 percent of farms that have more than 100 cows,” the mark of captialism streamlining the milking process. The limits of the Holstein cow have been carefully calculated and modified—through hormonal injections and selective breeding—to produce the maximum amount of milk.

The dairy cow in today’s world is a near-perfect machine.

Three-hundred-and-five days of the year the cow is subjected to the exact same routine: milked three times a day by milking machines. Their movements are coordinated and happens at exact times of day. This is the maximum number of days that the milk farm designers found for a cow to be milked. The 60 other days must go into the rest of the cow’s birthing cycle in order for her to produce milk for another 305 days.

The idea of a maximum, or limit, really interests me because this is the point where capitalism can no longer push any further. It is either 1) not technologically possible given their current state of research into cow physiology or 2) there is no longer benefit from producing any more milk given the number of cows.

This number really speaks to the limits of the system I am researching, and the limitations of the Holstein cow.

A Holstein cow has an average lifespan of 20 years. A Holstein cow in a dairy farm has a lifespan of 5 years before they are culled for food. At that point, they have exhausted their milk producing systems and are no longer efficient enough for the farm. Five out of twenty years is all it takes for the industry to completely use up a cow.

In the US, there are roughly 2,000 robotic milking machines installed, provided primarily by the Dutch dairy automation company Lely and the Sweden-based ag-equipment company DeLaval. These companies have pioneered the automation of milk farms for the sake of efficiency. These farms do not require a single human to operate, using 3D scanning and AI technologies to track, control, and milk the cows.

In addition to the 10% increase in milk production, the automated milking farming systems are supposedly designed to fit the needs and likes of the cows it “serves.” The fact that the word “comfort” is used in this context suggests a dystopian machine that perfectly accounts for the pains and pleasures of the cow as well.

Honestly, I would be more frightened by this machine if the cows themselves actually enjoy this environment. After all, the cows themselves have never been exposed to anything else, and I can imagine a world in which this is some twisted utopia for them (Look at Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare). In other words, the cow may fit perfectly into this machine, technically and spiritually.