Animal Colonialism: The Case of Milk

Abstract

Until the end of the nineteenth century — and sometimes well into the twentieth century — the majority of the world population outside Europe neither raised animals for their milk nor consumed animal milk. With the conquest by milk-consuming Europeans of the New World and other territories starting in the sixteenth century, dairying began to spread worldwide. European settlers did not set out to colonize lands and people alone, they transported with them animals and plants, including lactating animals such as cows and sheep. These living imports not only disrupted local ecosystems, but also relational patterns by altering, sometimes even severing, the breastfeeding relationship between females, be they animal or human, and their young. The essay concludes by offering a proposal for an international trans-species right to breastfeed.

Keywords: Milk, Colonialism, Animals, Animal Law, Breastfeeding, Right to Breastfeed, Formula, Ecological Imperialism

JEL Classification: K1, K32, K33, Q1