Dairy products. Back row left to right: smetana, kefir, cottage cheese, ricotta, mozzarella. Front row left to right: quark, cheese, butter, yogurt, milk.
While cattle were domesticated as early as 12,000 years ago as a food source and as beasts of burden, the earliest evidence of using domesticated cows for dairy production is from the seventh millennium BC – the early Neolithic era – in northwesternAnatolia.[8] Dairy farming developed elsewhere in the world in subsequent centuries: the sixth millennium BC in eastern Europe, the fifth millennium BC in Africa, and the fourth millennium BC in Britain and Northern Europe.[8]
In the last century or so larger farms specialising in dairy alone have emerged. Large scale dairy farming is only viable where either a large amount of milk is required for production of more durable dairy products such ascheese, butter, etc. or there is a substantial market of people with money to buy milk, but no cows of their own. In the 1800s, economistJohann Heinrich von Thünen argued that there was about a 100-mile radius surrounding a city where such fresh milk supply was economically viable.
Cool temperature has been the main method by which milk freshness has been extended. Whenwindmills and well pumps were invented, one of their first uses on the farm, besides providing water for animals themselves, was for cooling milk, to extend its storage life, until it would be transported to the townmarket. The naturally cold underground water would be continuously pumped into a cooling tub or vat. Tall, ten-gallon metal containers filled with freshly obtained milk, which is naturally warm, were placed in this cooling bath. This method of milk cooling was popular before the arrival ofelectricity andrefrigeration.
Harold McGee writes that, for thousands of years, "the making of cheese, yogurt, and other fermented products was largely uncontrolled, with microbes from the air or left over from the previous batch, whether desirable or not, colonizing the milk.... By the turn of the [twentieth] century, purified bacterial cultures were being used to control the quality of cheese more closely."[9]
Rates of dairy consumption vary widely worldwide. High-consumption countries consume more than 150 kilograms (330 lb)per capita per year. These countries are: Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Costa Rica, most European countries, Israel, Kyrgyzstan, Canada, the United States and Pakistan. Medium-consumption countries consume 30 kilograms (66 lb) to 150 kg per capita per year. These countries are: India, Iran, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Mongolia, New Zealand, North and Southern Africa, most of the Middle East, and most of Latin America and the Caribbean. Low-consumption countries consume under 30 kg per capita per year. These countries are: Senegal, most of Central Africa, and most of East and Southeast Asia.[7][10]
There is no scientific evidence that consuming dairy products causes cancer.[14] TheBritish Dietetic Association have described the idea that milk promotes hormone related cancerous tumour growth as a myth, stating "no link between dairy containing diets and risk of cancer or promoting cancer growth as a result of hormones".[15] In 2024,Cancer Research UK stated "there is no reliable evidence that casein or hormones in dairy causes cancer in people".[14] TheAmerican Cancer Society (ACS) does not make specific recommendations on dairy food consumption for cancer prevention.[16] Higher-quality research is needed to characterise valid associations between dairy consumption and risk of and/or cancer-related mortality.[17]
A 2023 review found no association between consumption of dairy products andbreast cancer.[18] Other recent reviews have found that low-fat dairy intake is associated with a decreased risk of breast cancer.[19][20]
The AICR, WCRF, CCA andProstate Cancer UK have stated that there is limited but suggestive evidence that dairy products increase risk ofprostate cancer.[21][22][23][27][28] Cancer Research UK have stated that "research has not proven that milk or dairy increases the risk of prostate cancer" and that high-quality research is needed.[14]
It has been suggested that consumption ofinsulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) in dairy products could increase cancer risk, particularly prostate cancer.[29][30] However, a 2018 review by the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COC) concluded that there is "insufficient evidence to draw any firm conclusions as to whether exposure to dietary IGF-1 is associated with an increased incidence of cancer in consumers".[30] The COC also stated it is unlikely that there would be absorption of intact IGF-1 from food by most consumers.[31]
TheAmerican Medical Association (AMA) recommends that people replace full-fat dairy products with nonfat and low-fat dairy products.[32] In 2017, the AMA stated that there is nohigh-quality clinical evidence that cheese consumption lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease.[33] In 2021, they stated that "taken together, replacing full-fat dairy products with nonfat and low-fat dairy products and other sources of unsaturated fat shifts the composition of dietary patterns toward higher unsaturated to saturated fat ratios that are associated with better cardiovascular health".[32]
In 2017, theNational Heart Foundation of New Zealand published anumbrella review which found an "overall neutral effect of dairy on cardiovascular risk for the general population".[34] Their position paper stated that "the evidence overall suggests dairy products can be included in a heart-healthy eating pattern and choosing reduced-fat dairy over full-fat dairy reduces risk for some, but not all, cardiovascular risk factors".[35]
In 2019 theNational Heart Foundation of Australia published a position statement on full fat dairy products, "Based on current evidence, there is not enough evidence to recommend full fat over reduced fat products or reduced fat over full fat products for the general population. For people with elevated cholesterol and those with existing coronary heart disease, reduced fat products are recommended."[36] The position statement also noted that the "evidence for milk, yoghurt and cheese does not extend to butter, cream, ice-cream and dairy-based desserts; these products should be avoided in a heart healthy eating pattern".[36]
Recent reviews ofrandomized controlled trials have found that dairy intake from cheese, milk and yogurt does not have detrimental effects on markers of cardiometabolic health.[37][38] A 2025 global analysis found that that total dairy consumption is associated with a 3.7% reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and a 6% reduced risk of stroke.[39]
Consumption of dairy products such as low-fat and whole milk have been associated with an increasedacne risk, however, as of 2022[update] there is no conclusive evidence.[40][41][42] Fermented and low-fat dairy products are associated with a decreased risk ofdiabetes.[43][44] Consumption of dairy products are also associated with a decreased risk ofgout.[45]
A 2023 review found that higher intake of dairy products is significantly associated with a lower risk ofinflammatory bowel disease.[46] A 2025 review found that dairy product intake is associated with a lower incidence oftinnitus.[47] A 2025 scoping review of systematic reviews found that dairy consumption is not associated with an increased risk of non-communicable diseases or mortality and may reduce the risk of several health outcomes.[48]
Dairy production infactory farms has been criticized byanimal welfare activists.[49] Some are concerned about how often the dairy cattle must remain pregnant, howcalves are separated from their mothers, how dairy cattle are housed, and how dairy production affects the environment.
In most modern dairy production systems, newborn calves are separated from their mothers within a few hours to a day after birth so that the cow’s milk can be collected for human consumption rather than consumed by the calf. In conventional practice, calves receive maternal colostrum for the first hours of life, after which they are typically raised separately and fed milk replacer, a formulated substitute for whole milk produced by the cow.[50]
The practice ofearly cow–calf separation is a major animal welfare concern among animal rights groups and segments of the public because cattle are strongly social animals that form maternal bonds under natural conditions. Studies have shown that separation practices can cause acute behavioural distress responses in both cows and calves, including vocalisation and increased activity, and interrupt normal maternal behaviours.[51]
Some groups avoid dairy products for non-health-related reasons. Some religions restrict or do not allow the consumption of dairy products. For example, some scholars ofJainism advocate not consuming any dairy products because dairy is perceived to involve violence against cows.[52] OrthodoxJudaism requires that meat and dairy products not be served at the same meal, served or cooked in the same utensils, or stored together, as prescribed in Deuteronomy 14:21.[53]
Veganism is the avoidance of all animal products, including dairy products, most often due to the ethics regarding how dairy products are produced. Theethical reasons for avoiding meat and dairy products include how dairy is produced, how the animals are handled, and the environmental effect of dairy production.[54][55] According to a report of the United Nations'Food and Agriculture Organization in 2010 the dairy sector accounted for 4 percent of global human-made greenhouse gas emissions.[56][57]
Growing awareness of dairy products' environmental impact, specifically greenhouse gas emissions, has led to many people reducing or avoiding dairy. In the EU, dairy is responsible for 27% of all diet related emissions, on average, whileplant-based milks cause 2.5–4.5 times fewer emissions.[58][59]
^ab"Lactose Intolerance". National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, US National Institutes of Health. 2021. Retrieved5 April 2021.
^ab"Lactose intolerance".Genetics Home Reference. 8 February 2016.Archived from the original on 25 January 2016. Retrieved12 February 2016.
^Aghasi M, Golzarand M, Shab-Bidar S, Aminianfar A, Omidian M, Taheri F (2018). "Dairy intake and acne development: A meta-analysis of observational studies".Clinical Nutrition.38 (3):1067–1075.doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2018.04.015.PMID29778512.S2CID29167833.
^Dall'Oglio F, Nasca MR, Fiorentini F, Micali G (2021). "Diet and acne: review of the evidence from 2009 to 2020".International Journal of Dermatology.60 (6):672–685.doi:10.1111/ijd.15390.PMID33462816.S2CID231643205.
^Zhang K, Bai P, Deng Z (2022). "Dose-Dependent Effect of Intake of Fermented Dairy Foods on the Risk of Diabetes: Results From a Meta-analysis".Can J Diabetes.46 (3):307–312.doi:10.1016/j.jcjd.2021.09.003.PMID35568432.S2CID239148132.
^Wiley, K.L. (2004).Historical Dictionary of Jainism. Historical Dictionaries of Religions, Philosophies, and Movements Series. Scarecrow Press. p. 78.ISBN978-0-8108-6558-7. Retrieved15 April 2019.In recent times, out of concern for the treatment of cows in commercial dairy farming, some Jains in the diaspora and in India now observe a vegan diet and discourage the use of dairy products in temple rituals.
