Milk

Introduction
Pros
- Pro 1: Dairy milk is an important part of a healthy diet for everyone.
- Pro 2: Dairy milk is an easy, nutritional drink that is available almost everywhere.
- Pro 3: Dairy milk protects against disease and other health problems in older adults.
Cons
- Con 1: Humans do not need to consume dairy milk to be healthy.
- Con 2: Dairy milk is bad for the environment.
- Con 3: Dairy milk is bad for human health.
Slideshow: Cows and other dairy milk animals
How milk gets from the cow to the store
- Step one: Rearing
- Step two: Harvesting
- Step three: Storing
- Step four: Transportation
- Step five: Lab testing
- Step seven: Packaging
- Step eight: Selling
American milk production
Global milk production
Global milk consumption
State-by-state raw milk laws
Calcium content in select foods
Historical timeline
- 8000 BC-63 BC
  - 8000 BC - Origins of the domestic cow
  - 4000 BC - Early evidence of milking cattle in neolithic Britain
  - 3000 BC - Evidence of dairy cows playing a major role in ancient Sumerian civilization
  - 3100 BC - The domesticated cow appears in ancient Egyptian civilization
  - 2000 BC - The domesticated cow appears in northern Indian Vedic civilization
  - 1700-63 BC - Milk in ancient Hebrew civilization and the Bible
- 1525-1776
  - 1525 - The first cattle brought to the Americas arrive at Vera Cruz, Mexico
  - 1624 - The first cattle brought to New England arrive at Plymouth colony
  - 1679-1776 - Milk and the Spanish California missions
- 1800-1899
  - Early 1800s - Milk maids and the compulsory smallpox vaccine in the United States
  - 1840-1920s - Milk production and distillery dairies in the United States
  - 1822-1895 - The drocess of dasteurization is developed by Louis Pasteur
  - March 23, 1883 - The New York milk war
  - 1884 - First glass milk bottles patented
  - 1893 - Dr. Henry L. Coit forms the Medical Milk Commission to certify raw milk
  - 1895 - Commercial pasteurization of milk begins
  - 1899 - Milk homogenizer is patented
- 1900-1949
  - 1913 - Typhoid epidemic in New York City
  - 1914 - The first Milk tanker trucks are introduced
  - 1917 - Mandatory pasteurization of milk begins
  - 1922 - Capper-Volstead Act passed
  - 1933 - Sioux City milk war
  - 1937 - First milk marketing orders initiated
  - August 28, 1939 - Dairy Farmers Union strike
  - June 4, 1940 - First federal milk program for schools
  - 1940s - Federally subsidized milk advertising under the Works Progress Administration
  - 1946 - National School Lunch Act passed
- 1950-1999
  - 1950s-1960s - Square milk carton introduced
  - October 11, 1966 - Child Nutrition Act of 1966 and the Special Milk Program
  - 1974 - Nutrition labeling of fluid milk begins
  - 1983 - Dairy Act of 1983 and the creation of the National Dairy Board
  - 1990 - Fluid Milk Promotion Act
  - 1992 - First USDA Food Pyramid is released
  - 1993 - "Got Milk?" advertising campaign launched
  - November 5, 1993 - Artificial Bovine Growth Hormone approved by FDA
  - 1994 - Protests against Artificial Bovine Growth Hormone Ensue
  - 1994 - FDA issues rBST labeling guidelines
  - 1995 - Dairy Management, Inc. (DMI) formed
  - 1995 - "Got Milk?" Barbie released
  - 1997 - Harvard study on milk and bone health released
  - 1998 - National raw milk campaign initiated
- 2000-present
  - December 2001 - Merger forms largest U.S. dairy producer
  - December 2002 - PETA files false advertising lawsuit against the California Milk Board
  - January 5, 2004 - Dean Foods acquires Horizon Organic
  - 2004 - Milk and weight loss ad campaign initiated
  - 2005 - Organic milk’s popularity continues to grow
  - 2005 - USDA dietary guidelines released
  - October 2005 - Physicians group files lawsuit demanding lactose intolerance warnings on milk
  - 2007 - Japanese man creates beer from milk
  - 2007 - Milk and weight-loss claims withdrawn
  - April 16, 2007 - Nation’s largest organic dairy violates organic rules
  - August 21, 2007 - FTC affirms the legality of ‘rBST free’ labels on milk
  - 2007-2008 - China’s tainted milk scandal
  - January 8, 2008 - FDA approves cloned milk for human consumption
  - August 3, 2011 - Market in Venice, CA raided by police for selling raw milk; Three arrested
  - March 2012 - U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) release report on dangers of raw milk
  - February 24, 2014 - “Got Milk?” advertising campaign dropped, replaced with “Milk Life”
  - 2015 - U.S. sales of dairy milk fall as non-dairy milk sales rise
  - June 1, 2016 - Australian regulators approve cold-pressure processing as alternative to pasteurization
  - September 25, 2019 - Milk residue found in prehistoric baby bottles
  - January 6, 2020 - Two largest American dairy companies file for bankruptcy
  - April 2020 - Dairy farmers to dump up to 3.7 million gallons of milk per day due to COVID-19 pandemic
  - 2022 - Number of American dairy farms dropped 95 percent since 1970
  - January 8, 2025 - Study shows increasing milk consumption may lower risk of colorectal cancer
  - January 7, 2026 - Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. flips food pyramid, putting dairy at the top
  - January 14, 2026 - Pres. Trump signs bill allowing whole milk in school lunches
Assessment quiz
1-minute survey
Discussion questions
Sources

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images, Videos & Interactives

Milk splashing out of a clear glass against a blue background, with droplets suspended in midair.

Pasteurization of Milk

Holstein dairy cow

Brown Swiss cow.

Portrait of a Nigerian dwarf goat facing forward with blue eyes clearly visible, set against a blurred green background.

La Mancha goat.

A girl milking a goat.

Milk: References & Edit History

Article Contributors

Primary Contributors

The Editors of ProCon
ProCon's editors write and verify new content and update existing content. ProCon presents the pro and con arguments to debatable issues in a straightforward, nonpartisan, freely accessible way.

Other Encyclopedia Britannica Contributors

Article History

Type	Description	Contributor	Date
	Updated Naoero's name.	The Editors of ProCon	Aug 07, 2026
	Discussion questions standardized.	The Editors of ProCon	Jul 23, 2026
	Addition of new USDA guidelines, milk production & consumption tables.	The Editors of ProCon	Feb 11, 2026
	Quiz added.	The Editors of ProCon	Oct 23, 2025
	Paragraph split.	The Editors of ProCon	Oct 20, 2025
	New photo and statistics added.	The Editors of ProCon	Oct 19, 2025
	Text adjusted.	The Editors of ProCon	Oct 19, 2025
	Addition of 2022 and 2024 timeline entries; formatting and sources edits.	The Editors of ProCon	Jul 09, 2025
	Invalidated site: Cleveland Clinic - Is Dairy Milk Good for You?	Emily Rodriguez	May 22, 2025
	Survey added.	The Editors of ProCon	May 06, 2025
	Add new Web site: Cleveland Clinic - Is Dairy Milk Good for You?	Grace Young	Mar 28, 2025
	Lancet retracted an article: data removed and note added to sources list.	The Editors of ProCon	Jan 22, 2025
	Links added.	The Editors of ProCon	Jan 04, 2025
	Tags added, text clarified.	The Editors of ProCon	Dec 09, 2024
	New article added.	The Editors of ProCon	Nov 08, 2024